Cruz: An AU UB Season 3 fic
by dadiva18
Summary: Betty made her desision. But how did it affect them? What happens if they meet 5 years later? Possible spoilers for season 3, AU.Betty solo, Nerd Love in later chapters. EPILOGUE UP 030610
1. Prologue part 1: Betty: Present Day

**A/N: I'm baaaaacckkk! I have to admit that after finishing "Leavin' On A Jet Plane", and the horrible news about season 3, my inspiration and creative juices, just stopped. Luckily, another great idea came into my head. This is a Betty going solo fic... for now. I might make it a shippy one eventually.**

**If you do not know the spoilers for season 3, you might want to avoid this fic for now. It might spoil the surprise (if you call it a surprise, more of an "OMG" shocker.). But those who know, here is another one.**

**As you can probably guess, it will be AU and it starts in the present and it will flash forward five years. I hope all you like this!**

**Special thanks and shoutouts to Henry's Honey's over at I-C, who keep us optimistic and just not wicked depressed, and to Erin for reading/proofreading this for me. As always reads/reviews are appreciated and I hope that this (and I think it) wont cause controversy like last time.**

**Enjoy!**

**-Prologue-**

Betty takes a deep breath as she steps out of her house, luggage in tow. She walks down the steps and looks back at her childhood home one last time before letting the cab driver put her luggage in the trunk and she opens the door to the cab, getting into it and buckling her seatbelt.

"Where to?" the cabbie asks.

"JFK please." Betty says as the can pulls away from her home.

As the car drives to the airport, she looks out the window as the car passes places that have triggered so many memories, now flooding into her brain. She sees the playground where her, Hilda, and their mother played in every Sunday afternoon, MODE, Gio's shop, and Central Park, specifically The Bridge. So many happy, sad, and interesting memories of her life, and the two men determined to be in it. She hates being a heartbreaker, but she knows her decision. She knows what to do.

She gets more nervous as she gets closer to the airport? What happens is she gets seen by one of them. She hasn't told either of them who or if she going with. Rome? Marriage? Does she really want it?

The cabbie stops the car, and Betty takes out her money as the driver gets her luggage out of the car. She pays and thanks the cabbie and walks into the airport feeling the blast of cool air on the hot day as the cab drives away. She walks up to a blonde receptionist at the main desk.

"May I help you?" she asks.

"Yes. I have a letter for two separate people going to two different locations. I was wondering if I can just get them to their prospective gates and deliver them?" Betty asks.

"Let me just call my supervisor to make sure it is ok. But before I do, I will just need some information for security purposes."

Betty promptly gives the receptionist who she is, what people and flights they're on and their locations, as the lady writes it down. As the receptionist calls her supervisor and gives her boss the information, Betty cautiously look around the main lobby, hoping not to see Gio or Henry. Both of them wont arrive for a few hours, but she wanted to be safe to arrive early, plus she booked hers for a couple of hours before their flights.

"Ok. You are all clear. Just go through one of our security checks, and leave your luggage here, so it will stay safe. Just come back to get it." the woman says handing betty a chain with a security clearance card.

"Thank you." Betty says walking away and putting on the chain around her neck. She goes through the security checkpoint and off to the first gate. She walks up to the desk with a busty brunette working behind it.

"Bo journo! How may I help you?" she asks.

"Hi, you got a call that I was delivering a letter to someone on a flight later today."

"Yes, can I have your name, the recipients name and what flight?"

"Betty Suarez for Gio Rossi, flight 687 to Rome, Italy." Betty says, taking the letter out of her purse. It simply says _Gio_.

"All set." the clerk says taking it.

"Grazi and have a nice day." Betty says walking away.

"Ciao!" the woman says.

She goes through another maze of terminals and to her second gate. She stops and sits for a moment. She takes an unsealed envelope out of her purse, and reaches into her pocket. She takes the ring, puts it in the envelope with the letter, seals it, and labels it _Henry_. Just _Henry_.

She delivers the letter no problem and returns to the main lobby, gives back the card, gets her luggage and proceeds to her gate. She walked up just as they were boarding her flight. She gives her ticket to the lady at the desk and boards the plane. As she finds her seat, sits down, and buckles her seatbelt, she can't believe she is doing this.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to flight 189 to the Grand Canyon. Please make sure that your seatbelt is safely fastened and everything in its upright decision. We will be taking off in a few moments. Welcome and thank you for flying with us." she hears the stewardess say over the intercom.

As the plane moves and lifts off the ground, she closes her eyes, takes a deep breath, and smiles.

"Gotta take the jump…" she says to herself as she feels the plane going higher and higher, and farther away leaving her problems behind her…


	2. Part 2: Betty, 5 Years Later

**A/N: Ok first, thanks for your comments and such. I'm glad people are liking this. Now this will be oart 2 of a 6 part prologue. This part of the prologue is on the shortish side. It will go as follows: Betty in the present, betty 5 years later, and repeat with Gio and Henry, then the actual story will begin. I'm just setting up for it. So I hope you guys like the prologues.**

**Thanks to Erin yeat agin for proofreading for me. You ROCK! Shoutouts to my girls (and guy) at I-C. Sugarsticks for everyone!**

**Enjoy!**

**Betty 5 years Later- MODE **

"Betty, can I see you for a moment in the conference room?" Daniel asks from the intercom.

"Yeah Daniel, just give me a minute to finish up." Betty responds, finishing her work, grabbing her bag, and tidying up before leaving the area. She walks into the dark conference room.

"Daniel? You in here?" she asks. The lights come on.

"SURPRISE!" The room is filled with her co workers at MODE, Daniel, Daniel Jr., Alexis, Claire, Christina with little William by her side, Amanda five months along with Nick Pepper, Marc with Cliff and their son Matt, and all of MODE.

"Wha- What's this?!" Betty asks totally baffled.

"It's been four years," Daniel says coming up with a glass of champagne, giving it to Betty. "since Wilihmena was convicted and sent away for all the things she did. All thanks to you. It's about time that you got the thanks you deserve. To Betty." Daniel says raising a glass.

"Betty." the group says raising a glass and sipping their drink.

"Thank You. I really do not know what to say but thanks. I just do what I have to do for MODE. I love it here. And I would do anything for it."

"And that's all you can do. Thank You. You have done so much for us, so now we have to do something for you." Daniel says handing her a wrapped box.

"What's this?" Betty asks confused looking at the box.

"Just open it." Daniel says.

Betty rips the wrapping paper, opens up the box and removes the tissue paper. She gasps.

"Oh my- Daniel! Really? How-?"

"You have so much dedication and passion for this, and you without a doubt know what to do. So it is only natural and fitting that you do this. So how bout it?" Daniel asks.

"Of course! Yes!" Betty says, tears streaming down her face.

"Monday, and Congrats. Thank You Betty." Daniel says.

"No. Thank You." Betty says giving Daniel a big hug.

After the party, she takes a Meade car (Daniel insisted) to her apartment on the West Side. She thanks the driver as she gives him a tip and heads up the stairs to the forth floor. She fishes through her purse for a minute or two before she finds her keys, unlocks the door and enters her apartment. Out of habit, she throws her purse and coat on the chair.

While preparing for bed, it still hasn't hit her yet what she is about to embark on. She thinks the past few hours is all a blur, a dream.

She gets into her pajamas, and into bed. Before she does, she opens up the box, takes out the gift and puts it on her nightstand. The last thing she sees before falling asleep is the name plate and one step closer to achieving her dream:

_Betty Suarez_

_Assistant Editor-In-Chief_


	3. Part 3: Gio, Present Day

**A/N: Here is part 3 of 6 of the prologue. I'm sorry that it might seem long, but I'm dividing it up for simplicity and so by the time the real story begins, we are all caught up.**

**As always, reads/reviews are appreciated, and 5 years later will be up as soon as I can.**

**Thanks to Erin as always for proofreading for me. She is a DOLL! and as payment for her, here is a Sugarstick. Mush love to Henry's Honeys and to anyone who enjoys this and reads/comments/favs.**

**Enjoy!**

**-Gio, Present Day-**

Gio wakes up, gets out of bed, showers, gets dressed, and checks his luggage one last time. He gets his luggage and walks out the door to the cab waiting outside by the entrance.

As he rides to the airport, he smiles. Betty is really going to Rome with him! Well, she hasn't exactly told him yet that she was going with him, but he just knows it. He has idolized and admired Betty from afar, and for some time he has wanted to be with her, and he finally had that chance. When she said yes to Rome, he got so excited that for once, it worked out.

He arrives at the airport and thanks the driver, giving him the money and walks in. After an eternity at security and a maze of terminals, Gio arrives at the gate, looking around for Betty. He arrives at the desk and gives him his information. The brunette taps a few things on the computer.

"All set Mr. Rossi. Here is your boarding pass and such." the clerk says, handing Gio a few things. He sees the envelope and is confused.

"Excuse me, but what is this?" he asks motioning to the envelope in his hand.

"A young lady dropped it off earlier for you." the woman says.

"Ok, thank you." Gio says taking the items.

He boards the plane, takes his seat and sits, waits for Betty. He looks at the envelope as the captain is announcing the safety procedures, how it's crisp and has her writing on the front so Betty like: _Gio_. It hits him.

_Oh my God. She's not coming._

As the plane lifts off, he feels tears brim his eyes as he starts yet another journey alone…

**Later that night…**

Gio's light is the only one on and he is the only one still awake on the plane. He only hears the snores and grumbles from his fellow passengers. He looks at the envelope again for the five-hundredth time, since the flight started, just staring at his name in Betty's handwriting.

He's afraid to read it. He dreads to read that she picked _him_ instead of him. _But I have to do this sooner or later, so might as well do it now. Now or never…_ he says in his head. He takes a deep breath, opens up the envelope, takes the letter out and begins to read it, hearing Betty's voice as he reads it.

"Dear Gio…"

_Dear Gio,_

_If you are reading this, then you probably know what my decision is. I'm sorry. Some of my fondest memories of you is when we are barking and quaking at each other. Whenever I think about you, I think of great times with a great friend._

_Friend. That's just it. As annoying and loud mouth you can be at times, you are just as a great friend, who just wants the best for everyone in his life. You are so determined to achieve your goals in life, and you try to help all those around you achieve theirs. I know that one day, you will find someone who is just like you and loves you as much as you will love her._

_I am just not that person._

_You are such a great person and friend, and I felt that we rushed into things. I think if we continued at the rate we did, we would do something that both of us would've regretted and would soil our friendship._

_I didn't pick you. I didn't pick him__either. For the first time in my life, I have done something solely for myself, and for my well being. I am going away for a bit, and when I come back home, I am planning on getting my own apartment . I don't need a man to be happy. I just need to be true to myself._

_But I do have to thank you. If you haven't gave me the "oomph" , to do something, I still would be where I was when I started out at MODE so I thank you. Hopefully one day you will invite me to your sandwich emporium, and I will buy the biggest sandwich on the menu, and that The Eater will be there._

_Until then,_

_Betty Suarez_

He rereads the letter a few times.

"She didn't pick me." he thinks to himself. "_But_ she didn't pick him either." he continues. He gets his blindfold, puts it on, turns off his light and closes his eyes.

"She chose herself." he says before drifting off to sleep with the rest of the plane…


	4. Part 4: Gio, 5 Years Later

**A/N: This is wicked short, but it's what happened to Gio. Up next will be everyone's favorite Accountant, then off to the real story!**

**Thanks to Erin again for proofreading for me. She rocks my socks! and shoutout to Henry's Honeys.**

**Please read/comment/fav/LOVE!**

**Enjoy!**

**Gio, Five Years Later- Times Square**

He walks into the building, and smells the fresh paint on the walls, and sees the shininess of the new furniture. He takes a deep breath.

"Yep. Today's the day." he exhales, looking around the place.

He makes some adjustments with some of the pictures on the walls, and begins to prepare the food. As he is about to finish, he hears a knock at the door.

"Gio?" The woman says from outside looking in on the space.

"You know this place doesn't open till 10 right?" Gio says smiling and walking over opening the door.

"Not even for your own sister?" Antonella says giving her brother a hug.

"Yes, but you have to wait." Gio says

"What happened to the family discount?" she asks being just as annoying as her older brother.

"You mean your employee discount? Remember you have to work for your food." Gio says being just as loud-mouthed as his younger sister, and smiling at her.

"Yeah, I know. I thought I would try." Antonella laughs.

The rest of the morning, the siblings tidy up a little bit and makes some samples to put on the tables.

By the time 10am comes around, a big group gathers outside. After changing into his suit, he looks at his reflection in the mirror, and goes outside to the crowd. His friends, family, and loyal customers are there for this moment. He has been waiting for so long for this moment.

As he grabs the scissors and cuts the ribbon, he finally accomplished his goal.

"Welcome to Gio's Sandwich Emporium!"


	5. Part 5: Henry, Present Day

**A/N: Here is part 1 of the Henry catch up. I have to tell you it was hard to do, but I did it. The next part will be up in a couple of days.**

**Thanks, as always, to Erin who reads my stuff in advance so I don't put out crap for a story. Also much love to Henry's Honeys and to all who have commented so positive on it and have enjoyed this story so far. SUGARSTICKS FOR EVERYONE!**

**Enjoy!**

**Henry, Present Day**

He lies awake in his bed as the early morning sun starts to peek through the window. He didn't sleep at all and was wide awake when he turned off the alarm. He gets out of bed, showers, and checks his luggage one last time before leaving the motel room.

As the cab drives to the airport, his stomach is in knots, his palms are sweaty, and his mouth is dry. This could very well be the most important day of his life, one that will change his life for the better…or worse.

"What happens if she doesn't pick me? What will I tell Charlie when I come back all of a sudden?" he keeps asking himself getting out of the cab, into the airport and looking around for Betty. So bad he hopes to walk around a corner and seeing her there, smiling as bright and radient as the ring that is on her finger.

"What happens if she DOES pick me? What will I tell Charlie when I come back?" he ponders through security and checkpoints walking to the terminal.

The last of the passengers are boarding the plane as he arrives at the gate. Looking once more around him for Betty, he boards the plane and finds his seat. As he sits in his buckled seat, the butterflies in his stomach is multiplying by the second, and now his whole self is sweating.

"Please Betty. Please come." he says softly closing his eyes and waiting, just waiting.

"Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to flight 727 to Tucson today." he hears the stewardess' voice through the intercom.

At this point, his eyes start to water and go down his cheeks. He knew that she didn't pick him.

"Before we go through our safety procedures, I have something for a Henry Grubstick?" the woman says looking round.

"Me." Henry raises his hand, trying not to show his tear filled eyes. The stewardess walks up and hands Henry the envelope. As the stewardess continues with the pre-flight procedures, he just sits there, looking at the envelope with his name on it. _Henry_. So plainly written in betty's handwriting. As he turns the envelope around, he feels something small and hard in the letter.

"The ring." he thinks to himself falling into a deeper depression as the plane goes higher and higher.

He contemplates, ponders, and contemplates some more as the plane keeps going. For 40 painstakingly minutes, he can't decide what to do. He had to make a decision, and he does.

"I must. If it's the last thing Betty will ever say to me, I must know why." he says to himself as the stream on his cheeks from his tears start to dry.

He opens the envelope with his shaky hands, and pours the ring out of the envelope and into his hand. And opening the letter, he feels the tears brim his eyes.

_Dear Henry,_

_It seems so long ago when I first met you, all in a rush, trying to be on time. I knew at that moment that something great was going to happen with you._

_Something did happen. I fell in love, and I had the best five months of my entire life. I have laughed with you. I have cried with you. I have connected with you on so many levels and so much closer than anyone in my entire life. I know that I can trust you with anything and when I am sad, all I need to do is envision your smiling face, and I would feel better._

_I have to admit though that when you proposed to me, at first I was ready then and there to put that ring on my finger, jump into your arms, and into that plane with you. For what seems like an eternity, I have dreamt of being with you, being your wife, raising a family, and fulfilling the fantasies we both dreamed of._

_But then I got to thinking. You are a dad, and you have Nate. Now, I am not saying that your son is the reason I am doing this, not at the least, but you **just** became a father. And I know deep down that you will the best dad to your son as humanly possible. So right now your number one priority, and most important thing in your life, has to be Nate. As much as you will not agree with this, I can't come and possibly make matters worse between myself, you, Nate and Charlie._

_Now even though Charlie made some mistakes, and she has caused so many troubles for us, it would not be fair to her if you just swipe me of my feet and possibly take Nate away, which I'm not saying that you would do that. But give her a chance to be a mother to Nate as you a dad._

_With Gio, he was just so much of a great friend, I did not want to ruin the friendship we have with something that was going way too fast and too drastic for me. _

_I didn't pick either of you. I'm going on a vacation for **myself** and I am getting an apartment for myself when I come back home. In order to move on from all this drama and to grow up, I must do this. I have to listen to me for once and do what's best for myself._

_I love you. I have loved you and I will always love you. I know that one day in the future, we will meet again, and we could even start where we left off. But you have to just do what you have to do and one day, it will happen. I'm sorry that I hurt you._

_Be the best dad you can possibly be. Love him, care for him. I know that you will be an amazing dad, and that your son will love you everlastingly. One day he will say about how he wants to be just like his dad. I can not wait till he says that, because any kid would be half as lucky if they were like you in anyway._

_Just promise me that every now and then you will think of me and remember that there is someone there who loves you unconditionally and that if you ever need me, I will be there._

_You know, that night we saw WICKED, we never got to see a certain scene. The one scene that describes us so well and it's our song:_

"_As Long As You're Mine"_

_Love,_

_Betty Suarez_

By the time Henry finishes the letter, he is having trouble seeing the text Betty has written due to the tears streaming down his face. In a split second, his heart was broken, again. But he knows that Betty was right, that he has to be a father to Nate first and foremost and that he respects her decision. He puts the letter back in the envelope and just stares at the ring his hand.

"One day Betty. One Day…"


	6. Prologue Part 6: Henry, 5 Years Later

**A/N: Henryness for all you anticipating this. Thank you for all your kind revews and the real stary starts after this!**

**Thanks to Erin for reading as always and to all my cronies at I-C. Much LOVE!**

**Enjoy!**

**Henry, Five Years Later- Tuscon**

"Happy Birthday dear Nate, Happy Birthday to yoooouuu…"

"CHA CHA CHA!" The group of sugar-ridden children yell and cheer for Nate. Henry comes up behind his son about to blow out the candles.

"No Nate. You have to make a wish first remember?" He asks.

"Oh yeah. Thanks Daddy." Nate says closing his eyes and making a wish, his father doing the same. He wishes. He wishes the same thing every year. He opens his eyes upon the silent room, a rarity with 4/5/6 year-olds just in time to see his son blow out the candles in one big breath.

The group of children cheer very loudly, mainly because they know that they are having cake soon. Henry laughs at the children and their eagerness as he gets the cake to cut it. Nate being the gentleman he is comes over and helps give cake to his friends at the table then starting to consume the cake himself, getting it all over his face and somehow on his glasses.

Henry gets a couple pieces of cake and hands it Charlie, by habit putting on her enlarging belly, and to the man by her side.

"Looks like he has more on his face than in his mouth." Charlie laughs putting some cake on her fork and taking a bite. "You really do an amazing job with Nate."

"Well, it's not all me. Yes, he may live with me, but you and Gabe have done very well with him also. He always likes to show me what he learned over your house." Henry says motioning to the two then Charlie and Gabe looking at each other with adoration.

The past five years have been interesting with the birth and taking care of Nate, trying to figure out who should he live with and such, then the sudden arrival of Gabe begging Charlie to give him another chance, marrying short afterwards. But it has all worked out. Henry have became great friends with Charlie and Gabe and they are very good role models for Nate. Everyone, Charlie especially has grown up since the birth of Nate.

"what did you wish for?" Gabe asks Henry

"The same thing he wishes for every year." Charlie pipes in taking another bite of cake.

Henry sighs and nods his head. It is true. He wishes for the same thing every year. The thing he wishes for is in a memory and is left behind five years ago, and on the other side of the country, but might as well be the world for Henry.

"Presents, Presents, Presents…" the children start to chant while their respective parents attempt to clean up the cake and such on their faces, Nate chanting the loudest of all.

Finally Henry gave in and fifteen minutes and a mile high pile of ripped wrapping paper later, Nate and his friends get out of their seats and start to play around the room, trying out some of Nate's new toys. Henry starts to clean up the table and room, a couple of parents helping him out.

"Look at this guys!" one of Nate's friends say. The child takes out a big Statue of Liberty pencil from the kid's bag.

"My daddy got it when he went to New York." he says.

Henry hears the _Oohs _and _Ahhs_ from the children and turns his head to the child showing the souvenir.

"My daddy used to live in New York. He said I was born there." Nate tells his cronies.

Henry flashes back to that day. He remembers it so clearly and so well. It was the proudest, happiest, and saddest day of his life. He remembers her face, but especially her eyes when he showed his baby boy to her. So full of happiness and pride for Henry, but also uncertainty, and sadness for her, for both of them, how this ended up.

"Maybe you could go. I mean just to visit. I bet Nate would like to see the place that his dad keeps telling him about." Gabe suggests. The light bulb goes off in his head.

"You know what? That's a great idea Gabe. I'll talk about it with Nate tonight to see if he wants to go." Henry says looking at his son play, still seeing specks of frosting on his glasses. If he plays his cards right, he will be calling cousin early in the morning…


	7. Reunited

**A/N: I'm not dead yet! Sorry bout the LONG, VERY LONG, WICKED OVERDUE update on this. First few weeks of college was crazy! After being pushed and bothered and pressued by my friends in chat, I finally finished. And teh funny part, my college writing class has been cake so far. Fan fiction helped my english skills! WOO!**

**Thanks as always to Erin who proofreads for me, and to all my homies in chat who kept bothering me to update. I did my part of the deal. Your turn now! Hehehehehe...Henry's Honeys I love you!**

**I will try to update as soon as I am able too. I'm sorry I will not be able to update as ofetn as I did during teh summer, but my schoolwork has to come first as we all know (with procrastinating with fics on the side ;D).**

**So now with that of my chest, Here it is.**

**ENJOY!**

One of the perks of being an executive: longer lunches. Betty is walking around Times Square, looking around at the various delis and pizza places. As she arrives at a crosswalk, something across the street catches the corner of her eye. She sees the oh so familiar giant smiling pickle. She sees the sign under it. It says _Gio's Sandwich Emporium_. She smiles. "Looks like he did it." she thinks to herself as she crosses he street.

She arrives at the building and feels the _swoosh_ of cool air as she walks into the establishment. Looking around the shop, she just looks around and sees the pictures he posted. Pictures of places he love: Pictures of NYC, his childhood home, Rome. A pang of guilt surges though her body time after time she sees a picture on the wall from Rome. She thinks back to that day years ago, when she left him alone, that he is not the one. By a letter, and not telling him face to face.

She walks up to the counter, Gio known by look right away, grown back his flyaway shaggy hair and expression looking down at the screen.

"Can I help you?" he asks, still looking down at the screen.

"Yes, I would like an order of _BARK_!" Betty says with smile.

Gio stops what hes doing and looks up. His eyes widen at the sight of his friend.

"Hey!" He walks out of the counter area with a huge grin and envelops Betty in a hug.

"Hey yourself!" Betty says hugging him back.

"How are you Eater?" Gio asks.

"I'm actually great. I just got promoted to Assistant Editor-In-Chief." Betty beams excitedly.

"Oh my God hat great! Looks like it is working out for you!" Gio says.

"Yeah, and it looks like it is for you too! Your five-year plan is just about complete!" Betty smiles.

"Yeah, I'm still working on the condiments part, but it will soon." Gio says then laughs. He motions to a woman at the counter which Betty recognizes as Gio's little sister Antonella. She comes over.

"Antonella, you remember Betty right?" Gio asks motioning to his friend.

"Yeah, I do. Nice to see you again Betty." Antonella says holding out her hand to shake. Betty accepts it and shakes his sister's hand.

"Nice to see you too." Betty responds.

"Antonella, can you make up The Ultimate and my usual for me please?" Gio asks his sister. She nods and makes her way beck behind the counter. Gio motions over to a table. Betty and Gio sits down at the table.

"So how was the Grand Canyon?" Gio asks Betty.

"Oh! Amazing! The view was gorgeous and the weather was perfect. I really needed it at the time. Too much at once." Betty explains. Antonella comes over and hands them their wrapped sandwiches. Betty and Gio thanks her as she walks back to the counter with a waiting customer.

"So how was Rome?" Betty asks, unwrapping her sandwich.

"Extraordinary! I have found new techniques and recipes, and it was just a great trip. I use a lot of what I learned in Rome here with my sandwiches. Try your sandwich." Gio says. Betty picks up a pre-cut half and takes a big bite. An explosion of flavor comes into her mouth.

"Oh my God Gio! This is the BEST sandwich I have ever tasted!" Betty says, food in her mouth.

"Thank You. I found some things, tweaked some things, and combined a recipe and two and Viola! The Ultimate. Oh and just for our reference, it is the most expensive sandwich I sell." he says with a smile.

All of sudden, Betty was not hungry. She swallowed her bite sadly and just sat there, looking down at the sandwich. Memories of that fateful day flood back into her memory. He referred back to the letter. The one that she wrote, telling him that she didn't choose him, and left him high and dry on a plane to another country.

"Betty what's wrong?" Gio asks worried.

"I'm sorry Gio." she says softly.

"For what? You've only been her for ten minutes." he says.

"For leaving you all alone." Betty states, putting down the sandwich. "I knew that it was a stupid way to let you go, but I was afraid. I was too afraid to approach you and tell you face-to-face. I didn't want to see your reaction, the look on your face, what you would've said..." Betty rambles, memories flooding back to her about the decision she made, tears staring for form in the corner of her eyes.

"I'm sorry I broke your heart Gio." Betty says, the first tears rolling down her cheeks. Gio reaches over and takes Betty's hand.

"It's ok Betty. I know it was a very hard decision to make. I know you didn't mean to hurt anyone. You just needed to choose yourself. And you did. I am proud of you just for that. I mean, look where you are now Betty. So close to your goal you can almost taste it!" Gio says. Betty looks up and smiles.

"Oh yeah, I remember, amazing friend." She says with a small giggle. She looks at her watch.

"Ah Dios Mio! I'm running late. Sorry to cut this short, but I have to go. I'm sorry Gio. She says wrapping up her sandwich and standing up.

"That's ok. I understand. I'll visit some time this week ok?" Gio asks getting up.

"Please! Would love to show you my new setting!" she laughs. Betty opens her arms and hugs Gio a long hug, to make up for the trouble she might have caused.

"It's good to see you again Betty." Gio says.

"You too Gio." she says walking toward the door. She opens it.

"Hey Betty. Question. Did you do the same thing to Henry?" Gio asks.

"Yeah." Betty says, thinking about the last time she saw her Sugarstick.

"Have you talked to him?" Gio asks.

"No. But I do wonder every now and then how he, Charlie and Nate are doing. I'll see you later Gio!" Betty says waving and leaving.

As she walks back to MODE, memories of her and Henry begin to flood her mind.

It's not like she hasn't stopped thinking about him. There's always something that triggers memories like Christmas, and expense reports to fill out for Daniel. She has tried to date other men, like that neighbor of hers, but she could never feel the same way for them like she did and still does for Henry.

She arrives back at MODE and gets back to work. She looks at layouts, got some stupid chain emails from Amanda and Marc and just doing what she does best.

Throughout the afternoon, she hasn't stopped thinking about Henry. She goes into a folder in her computer and looks at pictures of her and Henry. At Central Park, at the seaport, Christmas at his place, at her house after he woke up the day after her birthday. As she keeps looking at the photos, her eyes start to well up. After all this time, trying to keep her composure about this, she can't anymore.

She has never stopped loving him. He was her world, he was the one person that understood her and connected with her more than everyone. He always thought she was beautiful, and he made her feel beautiful. He sacrificed everything to be with her and was risking to take giant risks with her. One of things she wanted out of everything she ever wanted was to be Mrs. Henry Grubstick, and he offered with it, with happiness on the side.

And she gave it up.

She sat back in her chair, too off her glasses and let the tears flow.

"Why did I do that? Why? I am SUCH an idiot! So stupid! Henry I love you! I hope you still know that wherever you are!" she cries, opening a closet in her heart that was closed a long time ago...


	8. Lost

**A/N: I am SO SORRY for the long overdue update on this. Between school, and writer's block, this chappy was kinda hard to get. So I hope you like it.**

**Thanks as always to Henry's Honey's over at I-C who are just fantabulous, and to Dani over at I-C who proofread this for me to make sure it is as fabulous as I think it is.**

**I will try to get the next one up as soon as possible. I'm sorry in advance if it takes awhile to be updated.**

**ENJOY!!**

**Three Weeks Later- MODE**

Betty is in her office, looking at the layouts for next month's issue when she hears a knock at the door.

"Come in." Betty says, her focus still on the layouts. She hears the door open and the rustle of a brown paper bag. She looks up, seeing Gio with a huge brown paper bag.

"Lunch?" he asks, holding up the bag.

"Yes please. I am STARVING!" betty says. She puts the layouts aside, just as quickly as it was replaced with the contents of the bag, sandwiches, chips, and drinks. They eat their lunches hungrily.

"I don't know Gio." Betty says in between bites. "Ever since we spoke a few weeks ago, I have been wondering about Henry. How he is, how Nate is, how Charlie is. I wonder if Nate has started school and if so, how he is doing. I wonder if Henry and Charlie have made peace, or if they have parted their ways. I just want to know he is ok." Betty says. She looks down at her desk, fighting the tears brimming her eyes.

"You still love him, don't you?" Gio asks. She looks up at him, with her water-filled eyes.

"Yes." Betty says softly, letting a tear or two trickle down her cheek. Gio stands up, walks over to Betty in her seat, and gives her a hug from behind.

"I know. I'm sorry that you miss him." Gio tries to comfort his friend.

"It's just, I have thought of him, but not this much and often for so long. He was in the back of my mind and it wasn't until just recently that he actually is what I mostly think about. I have tried to date other men, tried to move on, but none of them were as amazing as him. No offence Gio." Betty apologizes.

"None taken." Gio says.

"It's just, he was so special, so rare." Betty lifts up her head and looks dead ahead, her mind just thinking about him. "It was the best five months of my life. Bowling, vents, _WICKED_." Betty says, thinking back at those fateful months.

"Well," Gio says, walking back to his side of the desk and picking up the trash on the desk "If you said what you told me on my letter, then I know that one day, you will be with Henry again. I guarantee it." Betty stands up and meets Gio, heading for the door.

"Thanks Gio. It's so great being able to talk with you again." Betty says hugging her friend and giving him a kiss on the cheek.

"Anytime Eater. Back to the sandwiches I go." Gio says, opening the door. "Same time next week?"

"Uh huh. See you later." Betty says, letting her friend out. She smiles. These past few weeks, being able to reconnect with her long-lost friend has been great, and he does understand her, and is still just as supportive of her goals as the days when they were just acquaintances. Just as she is about to turn around and back into her office, she spots a small boy with dark brown hair and glasses. Naturally, she walks over to the child to make sure he is ok. She kneels down.

"You lost?" she asks the boy. He farsightedly turns around and hides under a nearby desk.

"Don't worry. I'm just here to help you." Betty says walking over to the desk and sitting down, seeing the boy. She smiles at him, trying to be friendly. The boy giggles.

"What? What's so funny?" Betty asks with a smile and with confusion. He laughs harder.

"What's so funny?" She asks again. The boy points at her face.

"Your mouth is shiny." he giggles. Betty looks down, trying to see her braces. He laughs again.

"Oh, don't worry, it's just my braces. They've been on for so long, I just forget they are here.

"Do they hurt?" the child asks. _He is a quizzitive boy _she thinks.

"Only after they get tightened. But besides that, I don't feel them. I've had these on for a while." she smiles.

"You smile pretty." the boy tells Betty. She turns pink in the cheeks.

"Thank you." she says. She stands up, and holds out her hand. From under the desk. A small hand comes out from it and takes Betty's hand, getting out of the desk.

"Here, come with me and we can wait for whoever is here with you in my office ok?" she asks.

"Ok." the child says with a small smile on his face. Betty takes him to her office, pulls up a chair for him next to hers.

"So, who is here with you?" she asks.

"My daddy. He went to visit someone, but then all of a sudden, he wasn't there. Usually he _never_ lets go of my hand, but he just left." the boy says, a look of worry on his face.

"Betty logs on to socuteitssick, and starts showing the pictures to him. The boy laughs and smiles. Betty looks at him smiling, and something just triggered her mind. _That smile. It looks so familiar. _she thinks. For a moment, she thought she was looking at another face, by the way when the boy smiles it lights up the room, that it looks so much like a face she left a long time ago. The ringing of the phone snaps her out of her thoughts. She picks it up.

"Suarez"

"Hey, its Gabby." the new receptionist says. Amanda has taken over for Daniel's assistant and Gabby is just the perky, fresh face that MODE needed. "There is a man here who lost his son. Have you seen him?"

"Yes, he is with me. Please tell the man to stay there, and I'll send him down." Betty says looking at the boy enjoying the pictures.

"Ok, thanks."

"Anytime." Betty says, hanging up. The Boy looks up at Betty.

"Your dad is here." Betty tells him. The child smiles and jumps off the chair. Betty leads him to the door and opens it.

"You remember how you got here? Just go around the corner and down the hall, and your daddy will be there.

"Ok, thank you." the boy says.

"You are very welcome. It was nice to meet you."

"You too." the child says, walking away and turning the corner.

"Oh!" she calls. The boy turns around and looks at Betty.

"What's your name?" she asks the boy.

"Nate." he says with a smile. "Thank you." he waves then disappears around the corner.

She felt like a ton of bricks fell on her head. _Nate? Did he just say Nate?! _she thinks. She looks around the corner and talking to Gabby and his son, now sitting on the desk, clear as day and in the flesh, was the man that in the past few weeks have cried about. The man she left so he can do the right thing. Even after five years, have never stopped loving him.

Her mouth goes dry, her palms sweat, her heart pounds into her chest at a million miles an hour. He turns his head in her direction and she whips back around the corner and into her office, tightly shutting the door along the way. She sits at her desk and tries to digest what just happened. Her phone rings.

"Suarez"

"Betty, it's Christina. I had this strange feeling that something just happened to you and you need to talk to me."

"He's here." Betty says.

"Henry?!"

"Yes Henry, as in Henry Grubstick, the man who left me to go to Tuscon twice and has a son and who has flooded my thoughts these past few weeks and who I still love like mad. That Henry."

"Ok, Ok, just calm down. Did you have lunch?"

"Yes, but I am taking the rest of the day off." Betty informs her friend.

"Ok, when will you be down?"

"Give me about five minutes to close shop, then I will be down ASAP.' Betty says.

"OK. See you soon." Christina says before hanging up. Just as she puts back the receiver, her phone chirps. She picks it up.

"Suarez"

"Betty, Mr. Meade is on line one."

"Thanks Gabby. But can you please tell Mr. Meade that I am out for the rest of the day for personal reasons?"

"Of course Betty. Enjoy the rest of your day."

"Thank you Gabby." she says before hanging up. She changes her settings to away, and shuts everything down, then promptly makes her way down to the Closet.

After much needed conversation (and a couple of drinks), Betty makes her way to apartment and right to bed. Nothing. She picks up a book and tries to read. Nothing. She tries to listen to music, cover here eyes, even count sheep. Nothing. She turns off the lights and just stares up at the ceiling, thinking about that little boy, how he is so young, not really knowing why him and his daddy came and how important that meeting was going to be…


	9. Paralyzed

**A/N: Here is a WICKED short chappy for you guys while I am still working on juicy big chapters while I'm in school, and I'm sorry if I leav eyou guys hanging. I'm just evil like that ;D.**

**Thanks as always to Erin who proof-reads this, to Henry's Honeys at I-C, and to those who reviews and Loves this fic. **

**Enjoy!**

Henry can't sleep. The image of Betty and Gio running through his brain. His jealousy rising, a reaction he had not have for quite some time. He was so excited and ready to be reunited with the one woman he ever loved and have one of the most important things in his life, back in his life.

_I need to talk to Gio_. He thinks to himself as he feels his eyes droop a little. His mind drifts to a very frequent fantasy of his, the same one that has been for years. A house with a white picket fence, and kids running around the yard. The same fantasy that they both dream of.

Henry wakes up after having only a couple hours of solid sleep, wakes up his son, and get ready for the day. They head to the hotel complimentary breakfast .

"Where are we going today Daddy?" Nate asks through bites of his Cocoa Puffs.

"I was thinking Times Square today. What do you think?" he asks before taking a bite of his bagel and cream cheese and sip his coffee.

"Ya! I like that." Nate says with a smile.

Later that day, around lunchtime, Henry and his son are walking around Times Square, Nate just admiring and is fascinated by the tall buildings and the hustle and bustle of NYC.

Henry looks down at his son, and knows that he is getting hungry so he is looking at the many food establishments for him and his son to eat.

"Oh Daddy! Look at that! That's a huge pickle!" Nate says pointing over at the food place down the street with the sign of a huge pickle with the text _Gio's Sandwich Emporium_ under it. _Gio..._ he thinks as he walks into the sandwich shop, and stand in line looking at the menu.

+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+

Betty wakes up with the strange feeling. She doesn't know what it means. She goes through the day with this feeling, getting stronger little by little as the day goes on.

As she walks into Gio's shop that day for lunch, that strange felling intensifies and goes into overdrive. Her heart starts to beat at a million miles and hour, her palms start to sweat, and her mouth is as dry as Death Valley. She was afraid to see what is causing the reaction, but the worst part is that she already knows who is causing her to react that way. Only one person in the world makes her react this way. Slowly she turns around to see that her fears are confirmed.

Right there in front of her, waiting in line to order, is the man that she has been dying and dreading to see after all this time, and with him, is the small boy she help find his way. Now looking at both of them together, he is a spitting image of his father, now he even appears taller than he was when they last saw each other.

_Well, I have to do this. I have to face the music. Now or Never._ Betty tells herself as she nears the line behind the two. Her heart feels like it is going oto rip out of her chest and on the floor below her. She she approaches them. Her palms are sweating as much as Niagara Falls is leaking water, and all those emotions she hasn't felt for a while is all coming back, her stomach filled to the brim with butterflies. She opens her mouth, not knowing what to say, except the one thing she told him long ago after they were apart.

"Hey You." Betty says. The man's head tuns around slowly, until they are face to face. Henrys face are a mix of shock, surprise, euphoria, and just happiness. His features just as she remembers them.

"Betty?!" Henry says, his face the same way he was when he said the same words she just said to him.

"Hi Henry." Betty says, trying with all her might to not jump into his arms and never let go...


	10. Catching Up

**A/N: Could it be?! Yes it is! A New chapter! I am SOOOOOOO SORRY about the time in between the chapters. I have been so extremely busy with school, that I had no time for this. Sorry. As one of my New Years resolutions, I will try to take care of this more, and now that I am done with my first semester, I am much more relaxed and I was able to finish.**

**Thanks to Henry's Honeys over at I-C. Happy Holidays girls! Here's your present from me! Alos tanks to Dani, who proofread the chapter for me. As compensation, here is a Sugarstick!**

**Enjoy and Happy new year!**

"Hi Henry."

"Betty! Uh…hi!" Henry says, his face still full of shock and surprise. Clearly he is still trying to get over the initial shock. "How-How have you been?"

"Great actually. Got an apartment, got a promotion." Betty says with a smile.

"That's great Betty-" Nate tugs at Henry's pant leg.

"Yes?" Henry asks his son. Nate points at Betty.

"That's her. She helped me when you lost me." Nate says. Henry looks up at Betty.

"Oh! You were the one that helped Nate." Henry says.

"Yes. He behaved very well considering the circumstances." Betty says looking down at Nate.

"Well, all he could talk about was how you were very nice and that you had a pretty smile." Henry explains with that look that is just for Betty. Betty smiles as she feels her cheeks heat up. " So I guess you have met Nate then already."

"Well kind of, but not really." Betty says, lowering herself to Nate's level.

"Ok then. Nate, this is my good friend Betty. Betty, this is my son Nate." Henry says.

"Hi Nate. I saw you when you were just born." Betty says holding out a hand. Nate takes it and shakes Betty's hand.

"Really?" Nate asks, wide-eyed, letting go of her hand.

"Uh huh. You are getting so big, I didn't recognize you when I saw you…at work." Betty says putting the pieces together, she stands up and looks at Henry, a look like when she found out about Nate. She opens her mouth to say something, but someone beat her to it.

"Next," Gio calls from the counter. Henry turns around to face Gio. Gio's eyes widen.

"Henry?" Gio says.

"Hi Gio." Henry says with a smile, extending his hand. Gio takes it in a firm handshake.

"How are you Egg Salad?" Gio asks smiling.

"Just fine Sandwich Boy." Henry says, also smiling. He picks up Nate.

"Gio, this is my son Nate. Nate, this is another friend of mine, Gio."

"Hello Nate. Nice to meet you." Gio says, friendly.

"Hi." Nate says with a small smile.

"So I am guessing your usual?" Gio asks.

"Yes please, Egg Salad on White. What do you want Nate?" Henry asks his son.

"May I please have a ham and cheese sandwich?" Nate asks politely.

"Yes you may. I'll bring them over to you." Gio says as Henry pays for the meal. He turns to Betty.

"Sit with us?" he asks with that dashing smile of his.

"Yeah." Betty says with a smile. A she watches Henry and Nate walk to the table, she can't help but think about what Henry said about her: _This is my good __**friend**__ Betty_.

_Friend? After all we've been through, we're back to that again._ Betty thinks to herself as she walks up to the counter with Gio manning it.

"Your usual?" Gio asks.

"Of course." Betty says with an unsure smile. She looks back at the father and son.

"Uh, did you know that he was going to be here?" Gio asks nodding his head towards the tall man with glasses and the small spitting image next to him.

"No, well, at least not **here **here. Nate was lost within MODE yesterday and I kept him safe while someone came to find him. I didn't know it was him until he came to get him, I looked over the corner and there he was! I couldn't breathe!" Betty tells her friend, with an uneven look on her face.

"Just relax. Go sit down and I'll bring over your sandwich ok?" Gio says.

"Yeah," Betty says, paying for her food. She walks across the room and to the table where Henry and Nate are sitting, talking about something.

"May I join you?" Betty asks jokingly to Henry and Nate.

"Of course you may milady." Henry jokes around with that smile of his, that smile that is just for her, and motioning towards the chair across from him.

"Thank you." Betty says sitting down.

It is just silence around the table, Betty and Henry not knowing what to say, Nate sitting there being a good boy.

"So," Henry breaks the silence. "you said that you got a promotion."

"Yes I did." Betty says with a smile.

"Well, to what?" Henry asks.

"Assistant Editor-In-Chief." Betty says, smile even bigger than before.

"Really?! Oh. My God, that's great! For how long?"

"Only for a couple of months now."

"Well, it is about time you got something. As long as I have known you, you have put your all into MODE."

"Thank you, but If I am not mistaken, Henry, you also worked pretty hard when you were at MODE." Betty says with a smile. Although years has past since hey last saw each other, Henry's heart is pounding faster and faster when she blushes or smiles. Betty coughs to stop the gaze into his eyes, what she was doing.

"So Henry, what have you been up to?" Betty asks.

"Well, I have working for a firm, a couple of blocks from home." Henry says.

"Oh. You, Nate, and Charlie?" Betty asks. No matter how many years past, she has forgotten Charlie, a pang of guilt she got at the mention of her name. Luckily, Gio comes by with their food.

"Here you go guys." Gio says.

"Thanks.' Henry and betty say simultaneously.

"Thank You Gio." Nate says with a smile.

"You are very welcome Nate. Enjoy." Gio says then walks away. Henry prepares Nate's meal as Betty bites into her sandwich.

They eat their sandwiches in complete silence, only hearing some sighs of approval for the meal. Nate starts fidgeting next to his father. He taps Henry.

"Yes son?" Henry asks.

"I have to go to the bathroom." Nate says. Henry lets his son out of the area.

"Do you want me to come with you-"

"No. I want to do this all by myself." Nate says smiling then walking through the door with a man on it. Henry and Betty share a small chuckle.

"He is a gem Henry." Betty says.

"Thank you. I try by best." Henry says with pride for his son visible in his eyes.

"Yeah. You and Charlie did a fantastic job with Nate. In speaking of her, where is Charlie? I though she would be with you guys." Betty says.

"Charlie? No. She is in Tucson with Gabe."

"Gabe? As in Gabe Farkas my former orthodontist? That Gabe?!" Betty asks.

"Yes. Actually they are married and she is right now pregnant with a baby." Henry says.

A small moment passes by then both burst into laughter.

"Who would've thought that Gabe and Charlie would actually get married?" Betty asks in between fits of laughter.

"I know! After all that drama, talk about irony!" Henry laughs. Just thinking about all those problems years ago, makes the laughter die pretty quickly. They just sit there and avoid each others eyes. Both of them did not expect that the topic that is the most tender, would pop up in a place like this.

The sound of a flushing toilet and the opening of the door, snaps both of them out of the state they were in. Nate walks back to the table and Henry lets him to the table.

"Did you wash your hands?" Henry asks his son.

"Yes Daddy." Nate says, getting back to his sandwich. The rest of the meal was a little bit louder, Nate talking about school and his life back home. Nate was in the middle of a story about his class last week, when they hear a voice.

"Betty!" Gio calls.

"Yeah Gio." Betty calls back.

"Time." Gio calls. Betty checks her watch.

"Oh! Thanks Gio! Sorry to cut this short, but I have to get back to work."

"Please go. You need to get there." Henry says.

"Ok then, thanks guys. How long are you guys in town?" Betty asks, picking up her trash.

"Until Friday."

"Nice. Come visit me at MODE. I would like to see both of you before you guys leave. Same extension like I had when you were here. Just call be before you come up ok?" Betty says walking over to the barrel and throwing away her trash.

"Of course. I'll do that. DO you ant to visit Betty Nate?" Henry asks his son.

"Yeah!" Nate says excitedly.

"Ok then." Betty says getting to the door. "it was nice to see you Henry, and nice to meet you Nate" Betty says opening the door.

"Nice to meet you Betty.' Nate says waving.

"I'll see you late Betty." Henry says with a smile.

"Same time tomorrow?" Gio calls from the counter.

"Of course. Bye." Betty says before leaving Gio's shop. She runs to work and quickly fills Christina in on what happened. After that, the rest of her day flies by.

She walks into her apartment, throwing her bag on the couch out of habit and checks the fridge for food. Nothing. She makes a mental note to pick up groceries as she calls for some Chinese food. Her dinner was a peaceful one, just her, some General Tso's Chicken, and reruns of some show on TV. She gets into her pajamas in into bed with a book, but she can't read. Her mind is just filled with thoughts from the day's events, and just about Henry in general. Henry is back, but just for a short time. Nate is such a good boy and is just like his dad. Just seeing Henry with his son makes her smile, but tear up. She had the dream of them having a life, with Nate in it, if it is allowed. She doesn't know what to do. But she knows to talk to. She picks up the phone and dials.

"Hi Hilda? Just the person I need to talk to right now…"

**+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+**

Even though he was enjoying seeing his son enjoy the sights, his mind is just filled of thoughts of Betty, the one woman he truly loved. The look on her face, when she saw him, and just her in general. So beautiful, more beautiful then she was the last time he saw her.

Nate quickly falls asleep when they return to the hotel. He gets ready for bed and turns off the lights getting in. He just finds himself looking up at the ceiling, just thinking about Betty and the relationship they had, the best five months of his life. He can still feel the feel of her skin on his. He can still taste her kiss. He still gets butterflies when he sees her and his mouth went dry when she was there. It was like five years of pent up emotion exploded then and there. It finally hits him.

He never stopped loving her. After all those years, he still loves her as much as he did when he proposed to her. He even still has the ring he gave her. Then got back. It's even in the secret compartment in his luggage.

_I just can't lose her again, I just can't…_ Henry thinks to himself as he closes his eyes, images of him and Betty fulfilling the fantasies they both dream of…


	11. Back in the Swing of Things ?

**A/N: Sorry, but I already broke one of my New Year's resolutions o updating no longer than a month from the last update. It's over two months and I apologize. School is school and that has to come forst unfortunately. However, good news ensues, I have updated so that's good. i hope you enjoy this nice long chapter.**

**Thanks to Henry's Honey's who found a new home thanks to our friend and awesome fic writer (HINT HINT) Tracy, and to Erin who, as always, proofread to make sure it is not crap.**

**Happy Belated Valentines day, and here is your SUugarstick!**

**So here it is. enjoy the new chapter!**

" I don't know Hilda, It was like the wind knocked me over. I couldn't breathe!"

_"Just relax Betty."_ Hilda's calming voice says over the phone.

"How can I relax?! This is HENRY! HENRY is HERE! You know the man that I fell in love with, broke my heart, and is back? With his son?"

_"I know, but by the way you were telling me about the encounter you two had today, it sounded like it was not a disaster."_

"It wasn't. But it was just those couple of moments when we looked at each other and it felt like just the two of us. Plus he's even more handsome than before! I even was stupid enough to tell him to meet up again before they leave."

_"That's great!"_ Hilda says.

"Is it? I don't know if I can handle it! It's Henry!"

_" I bet, no, I KNOW that he is just as nervous as you are. Remember, __**he**__ was the one who had to leave."_

"Yeah, I guess I'll just try to calm down I guess. Maybe I'll just call him for lunch or something."

_"That's the spirit! Hey! How about you invite him for dinner tomorrow night here?"_

"I don't know Hilda-"

_"Come on! You need assistance, and I will be that assistance. I'll be right here to help you if you need it." _

"Ok, I'll invite him to dinner I guess." Betty says sighing.

_"Atta girl! I'll warn Papi."_ Hilda says.

"Ok, goodnight and thank you" Betty says before she hangs up.

The next morning, Hilda's words still ringing in her head, she is staring at the phone contemplating weather she should call him or not. The ringing of the phone knocks her out of her thoughts.

"Suarez."

_"Hey Betty. There is a Henry Grubstick on the phone for you."_

"Thank you Gabby. Please put him through." Betty says as her nerves start to intensify. She hears the phone click over. _Breathe Betty. Just keep cool. Calm down._ She tells herself as she talks, trying to keep her nerves at check.

"Suarez."

_"Betty."_ Henry's voice says over the phone, in that tone that is only for her.

"Hi Henry." Betty says, trying to steady her voice still. "How are you and Nate doing today?"

_"Very well thanks. Today we're going to the zoo then out for dinner."_

"That sounds like fun." Betty responds.

"Actually," Henry starts in that nervous tone of his, "I was- well, Nate and I were wondering, if you would like to join us for dinner tonight?" Henry asks.

"Actually, I was just about to invite you over Papi's place for dinner tonight, save you a couple of bucks." Betty says.

_"Well, will it be ok, I mean with your father, Hilda and Justin? I don't want to intrude and I don't want any bad blood-"_

"Henry, there is no problem at all. I assure you." Betty says crossing her fingers. The silence, to Betty, feels like hours, days, eternities before she hears his voice.

_"We would love to."_ Henry says. Betty exhales the breath that she was holding.

"Great! Dinner starts at 7, so you two should get there around 6:30. You remember where it is?"

_"Like it was yesterday."_ Betty thought there was something in the way he said it, that her stomach flipped and a smile came across her face.

"Cool. I hate to cut this conversation short, but I have to get some stuff done before I leave today. Enjoy the zoo!"

_"Understandable. I will see you tonight then."_ Henry says.

"Ok, see you!" Betty says before hanging up the phone.

The rest of the day went like a blur to her. As she travels to Queens, her emotions go into overdrive, nervousness ensures, she is getting anxious, her palms already drenched in sweat. She does not know what the night is going to ensue, but she just has that feeling that something is going to happen. Good, bad, she does not know, she just has that feeling.

"Betty!" Ignacio hugs his daughter as Betty walks through the door.

"Hi Papi." Betty responds, hugging her father back. She pulls back and looks at her father with a look of concern.

"Are you sure you are ok with this?" she asks. She knows that Ignacio did not think highly of Henry since he left, and Betty made her decision. He knows, she knows, they both know that she made the right decision, and at the time, it was the right thing to do.

"Mija," he starts, "I know that you want to get back on friendly terms with him, and I fully support that. I just don't want him breaking your heart again." Ignacio tells his youngest.

'Whatever happens, I will make sure that that will never happen again." Betty tells him. The doorbell rings and her palms begin to sweat…

_Earlier that night_

"Nate you almost ready?" Henry asks while adjusting his tie in the mirror. Nate decided today that he was going to dress himself and Henry knows to just let him, so he can learn to do it himself.

"Yes Daddy." Nate says walking out. His shirt is inside out, his pants are on backwards, and his shoes are untied. His son gives his father a look.

"What do you think?"

"You look great son. May I just help you out just a little bit more?" he asks.

"Ok." Nate agrees. Henry quickly adjusts Nate's clothes and catch a cab to Queens.

"So Nate, what do you think of Betty?" Henry asks his son.

"She's really pretty and really nice Daddy. I like her." Nate says with a small, innocent smile. Henry mimics his son's smile.

"Do you like Betty Daddy?" Nate asks his father.

"Very much so son." Henry says looking out the window of the cab with a smile more tender and loving then before.

Henry's nervousness grows, his palms begin to sweat, his heart starts to beat faster. _Calm Down Henry. It's just a harmless dinner with Betty and her family, _he thinks to himself. A she cab arrives at Casa De Suarez, he gets this strange feeling. A feeling that something might just happen.

Henry and Nate thanks the cabbie and Henry pays, as his and his son gets out of the cab. The cab drives away and the two people walk under the light in front of the door.

"You want to ring the doorbell Nate?" Henry asks his son.

"Yes!" Nate says excitedly reaching up for his father. Henry picks up his son and faces him.

"Ready?" He asks.

"Yes Daddy." Nate answers.

"Then push it." Henry says with a smile. Nate pushes the doorbell. Henry lets his son down and waits the few, eternal seconds until the door opens to Betty's smiling face.

Both for a moment, just stare at each other, just in slight awe.

"Hi." Henry tells the woman.

"Hey yourself. Hi Nate." Betty says looking at the small boy.

"Hi Betty." Nate replies with a small smile.

"Come on in. You came just in time." Betty opens the door for the two.

The moment Henry walks in, a wave of familiarity comes over him. The house changed a bit, except that there are many more pictures hanging everywhere, and that the people are older.

"Henry! Hey! Nice to see you." Hilda says coming over and giving him a hug. "How have you've been?"

"Fine Hilda, thanks. It's nice to see you also. Hilda, I think you remember Nate." Henry says motioning towards his son.

No! ¡Ah Dios Mio! He has gotten so big!" Hilda says lowering to Nate's level.

"Hey Kiddo. You can call me Aunty Hilda ok?" Hilda asks.

"Ok Aunty Hilda." Nate says with a shy smile. Hilda musses his hair and stands up. "Such a sweet boy Henry. Such a good one too." Hilda says.

"Thank you." Henry says beaming at his son.

Henry, all of a sudden, gets more nervous than he already was, and he knows why. From the kitchen walks in Ignacio with his _I'm the boss_ look on his face.

"Hello Henry." Ignacio says approaching the man and his son.

"Mr. Suarez." Henry says holding out a hand. Ignacio accepts it in a firm handshake. He looks down at the boy.

"Is this Nate?"

"Yes sir. Nate, say hi to Mr. Suarez." Henry tells his son."

"Hello, Mr. Suarez." Nate says softly. Ignacio winces in pain as he lowers himself to Nate's level.

"It's very nice to meet you officially Nate. You had gotten so big." Ignacio says holding out his gigantic hand, compared to Nate's. Nate takes it, with a shy smile.

"Nice to meet you too." Nate says, with a small smile. Betty looks and smiles at the interaction between both Nate and Henry with her father. Just to see the grown men get along, makes her nerves ease just a little bit. She knows that Ignacio won't lat Henry off that easy. Her father slowly stands back up.

"Well I hope both of you are hungry. I made carne asada tonight. Let's eat. Hilda, can you get Justin please?"

"Yeah Papi." Hilda says walking to the stairs and yelling up. "JUSTIN! DINNER'S READY!"

"Coming." A voice from upstairs says, which Henry can recognize as Justin, just his voice a little deeper than the last time he heard him. Hilda leads Nate to his seat and Ignacio stops Henry before he got to the dining room.

"I believe we have gotten to Ignacio before you left, It's fine to call me that, just relax. Nate is a good kid, I can tell." Ignacio tell him.

"Yes sir, thank you." Henry says with a more comfortable look and a small smile as he joins the rest of the group at the table…


	12. Stuck in the Middle

**A/N: Yep. I have TOTALLY broken my New Year's resolution. It's been over two months and I am SO SORRY! The good side: It's summer, which means PINGAGE!!!! :)  
I have to say though that after the season finale, I have new inspiration, but also mixed feelings about it. All I know is that it was GREAT to see his face again...**

**Thanks to Erin, as usual, for proofreading this. You are AMAZING and here is your payment in the amount of one Sugarstick. Also thanks to the fomer I-C girls who gather in a new home! I LOVE YOU GIRLS!  
Well, with that in mind, here you are. Enjoy!**

The meal starts out in silence, just the clinking of forks and knives on the plates.

"So Nate," Hilda breaks the silence. "What grade are you going to in September?" She asks the boy.

"Second Grade"

"Wow, already?"

"Nate skipped a grade." Henry beams down at his son.

"That's great." Hilda responds along with comments from the rest of the table. Nate turns a little pink in the cheeks.

"So Henry," Ignacio starts in between bites. "Where have you been working at?"

"There is a firm a couple of blocks from where Nate and I live. It pays the bills." Henry responds looking at Nate.

"Also, did I hear right that Charlie is now married to Gabe Farkas of all people?" Ignacio asks.

"Yes. In fact, she is expecting a child in a month or two. She really has grown up and is a good mother to Nate." he answers.

"Great, just great. Please give them my regards."

"I will make sure to do that."

The rest of the meal went well. Henry clears his plate, as usual, in satisfaction, Nate eats most of his meal, picking out the foreign things to him.

"That was very good. Thank You." Nate chimes in as Justin and Hilda get the dishes to wash.

"You are very welcome Nate." Ignacio says with a smile. The night moves to the living room, just normal chatter. Justin telling a story about school in Vermont.

"So we were all in Dibden and Micheala, Deidre, Bridget and I were just chatting in the theatre when Chris shows up and he was all like-"

"Justin, as much as I would love to hear the story, I am getting tired so I am going to head up to bed. Nice to see you again Henry and nice to meet you Nate. Goodnight everyone." Ignacio says getting up from his chair and going up the stairs.

"Night Papi." Betty says. Hilda soon follows. Justin, still blabbing away, also says goodnight and tells his mother another story. Betty looks over at a sleeping Nate in between her and Henry, glasses a skewed

"I guess he enjoyed night." Henry laughs beaming down at his son.

"I guess so." Betty laughs in return. The laughter between the two dies down. Silence. To betty, its like back to feeling like the only things in the world is just the two of them. Henry looks at her and just thinks _God, she is just so beautiful._

"So.." Henry breaks the silence and the glances.

"So…" Betty repeats with a nervous giggle.

"I see things are going well with you." Henry says.

"Yes." she responds.

"Your family seems to support you even more than ever.

"Yes."

"And you are getting closer to what you have been dreaming of doing."

"Yes."

"And you are beautiful as ever." He says. Betty blushes.

"Thank you." she says quietly.

"Yeah, Gio is a lucky man." Henry says defeated.

"Gio? What does he have to do with all of this?" Betty asks.

"Well…" Henry says nervously. "Well aren't you two…uh…well.."

"Dating? Oh no! You think after all of this that I would get back with Gio? What would make you think that?" she asks. Henry gives her a look. She knew why he thought that. She gets it now.

"Oh, that day at MODE. You saw me and me…."

"Yeah." He says with a blush, lowering his head.

"No, no not like that at all. I actually found him a few weeks ago on my lunch break. It's nice to catch up with him. Plus he has a girlfriend. She's so busy at her job that she's not able to show up that often at the shop."

"So have you've been…" Henry asks turning more pink in the cheeks.

"No, not really. A neighbor, someone from YETI, but no not really. I just haven't found _that thing_ I was looking for. What about you?" Betty asks nervously.

"Me neither. A couple of people, but not really. They also did not have _that thing_ I was looking for either." Henry says looking up at Betty and into her eyes. She looks into his dark eyes. She feels her heart pounding, her palms sweating, the butterflies in her stomach. Her face is getting closer and closer to his and she can't pull away, like some sort of magnet. He leans in also, powerless to her, holding his break in anticipation. He knows that he had wanted this for so long.

"Henry…" Betty says in a whisper, lips an inch or less from his.

"Shhh…" he hushes her. He can feel her inhaling, anticipating the explosion of emotion that is going to occur. He closes his eyes, he can feel the mere edges of her lips touching his…

The stirring of the small by in between them breaks them off of their trances. Nate sits up, glasses and hair messed up.

"Did I miss anything?" He asks, looking up at his father.

"No son. You did not miss anything." Henry says with an undertone of disappointment and sadness in his voice. "I was actually about to wake you up so we can get back. It's past your bedtime." Henry tells his son.

"OK Daddy." Nate says before jumping off the couch and over to the door to put on his shoes. Henry and Betty both in complete silence get up from the couch He calls the cab company for the cab to pick him and his son up and proceeds to put on his shoes.

"So Nate did you have fun?" Betty asks the boy, crouching down to his eye level.

"Yes I had fun. And I really liked the…the…uh…What's it called daddy?"

"_Carne Asada_." Henry says in perfect _Español_ . She looks up at Henry for a moment, heat rushing to her cheeks.

"Yeah, it was really yummy." Nate says smiling.

"Wanna know a cool word for that?" Betty asks.

"Yes!" Nate says excitedly.

"In Spanish, _delicioso_ means yummy."

"_Delic…_"

"_Delic…ioso…_" Betty breaks it down.

"_Delicioso._" Nate says breaking it down.

"Yeah, you got it!" Betty says giving Nate a high five. She hears a small chuckle and looks up ay Henry, a ear to ear grin on his face. She remembers that smile. The one that she and only she can make it happen. She gets up and stands face to face He only for a moment breaks his stare.

"Nate, go wait out in the hall for the cab and tell me when it's here."

"Ok Daddy." Nate says opening and closing the door behind him. Once again, silence, both of them not knowing what to do or where to start or what to say.

"So, here we are again." Henry breaks the silence.

"I guess so." Betty nervously laughs. "Well, I know you enjoyed Papi's food. You always do."

"Yes I did. I enjoyed my night also. His meals always get me in a good mood afterward." he replies.

"Yeah. It was nice catching up with you, talking to you again. It feels like forever."

"Yeah it felt so long also. I needed this. Just talking, catching up with you." he says. She turns pink in the cheeks. Silence. They both know what they want to say and what they feel. It's just both of them don't have the courage to say it.

"So, uh, before we go back we're planning on to-"

"I missed you Henry." Betty says softly, barely audible, lowering her head. A wave of relief falls with her. She have wanted to tell him for so long, especially the past few weeks. She didn't want anything kept hidden before he goes away again. On the outside, Henry doesn't know what to feel. While on the inside, he could jump up and down and go to the highest roof, professing his joy that she has said what he wanted to hear for what feels like forever.

He lifts up her chin and looks into her dark eyes. The overwhelming emotion that is coming over him is taking over again, feeling the magnet between the two faces again. She is giving in to temptation, and does not care that he might break her heart again. She wanted this for so long. He stops the advance.

"I missed you too Betty." he says in a whisper. They both hold their breath in anticipation and close their eyes…

The sound of the opening door stops them from their de já vu moment. Nate's head pops out of the door, followed by the rest of his body.

"Daddy, the cab is here." Nate says.

"Go out and get in. Tell the cabbie that I will be there in a minute. Say bye to Betty." he tells his son.

"Ok. It was nice to meet you Betty." Nate says holding out his hand. Betty accepts it in a handshake.

"It was nice to meet you too." Betty says. Nate opens and closes the door behind him. They hear the opening of a cab door. Betty smiles.

"He is such a good boy. You must be proud of him.

"I am." Henry says with pride. They look at each other.

"Our flight is tomorrow afternoon." he states.

"Yes."

"But we can call, email, facebook, ect., right?" he asks.

"Of course! And I expect a call or something telling me you and Nate are safely back in Tucson ok? I want to stay informed."

"That, milady, I can do." he says taking her hand and giving a small bow. He stands back up and looks at her. He can see the details on her face. The small freckles on her nose, the wisp of hair in her face, the small amount of water brimming her eyes, telling him _please don't go_. She sees his facial details, a little bit of a challenge to see with the tears ready to flow. But what little she can see, she sees that he is also having a small amount of trouble too with the small gathering of water at the brim on his eyes.

"So, uh…I guess this is…uh…" she stammers.

"Yes." Henry says. He hears a beep from outside and a small voice.

"Come on Daddy!" Nate's small voice says from the cab.

"Coming!" he calls to the cab. He clears his throat. "Well, I really should get going. Cab's waiting."

"Yeah, yeah go." Betty says opening the first door for Henry. He walks past her and turns.

"I'll call when I land." he says. Betty simply nods, tears getting bigger, ready to fall. He opens the door.

"Henry." she calls. He turns again. She walks over and envelops him in a hug. _If I can't kiss him…_ she thinks, _well at least I can hug him, get the message through_. Henry squeezes her tighter, not wanting to let go. The squeeze caused the tears in Betty's eyes roll down her cheeks. The tears forming a wet spot on his shirt. She hears a sniffle and looks up. She sees the tear streaks on his cheeks. She looks at him. He doesn't want to leave either; she can see it in his eyes. She gets up on her tip toes, gets closer to his face, and give him a small kiss on his cheek. They break the embrace and look, just look at each other.

"Go, go on." she says softly. He opens the door and looks back at her.

"Bye." he says before going and closing the door behind him. She runs to the couch as soon as the door closes and looks out the window. Henry walks slowly down the stairs, and puts one foot in the cab. He looks back at the house and over to the window where Betty is looking. He looks at her again with that special look. The one that is only preserved for Betty and only Betty. He gets in the cab, tells the cabbie something and they are off into the night. Betty does not look away until she no longer sees the car. She goes upstairs and to her old room. Throughout the years, her bed always remained made and spotless, like when she leaves it, and is always there for her is she needs to stay. Tonight, she needed to. She collapsed on the bed, and like she did years ago, she cried herself to sleep…

The next morning she wakes up to the sun shining in her eyes. She opens, rubs them and stretches. She just lays back in the bed and just think. _Did last nigh really happen? Did it?_ she thinks, going through the events of last night. How she wished she just kissed him like she is supposed to, wanting to have that feeling again. She hears a knock on the door.

"Come in." she says. The door opens to someone she really needed.

"I had a feeling that you needed my advise." she says.

"How did you know?" she asks with a shy smile.

"I'm your sister. I have a sixth sense." Hilda says walking over and sitting next to her sister.

"I just don't know where to start." she says.

"Why not at the beginning?" she asks, taking her sister's hand. Betty opens her mouth and starts to tell her older sister everything…


	13. My World Crumbles when you are not There

**A/N: Could it be?! Yes, A NEW CHAPTER! As we get the party started, a big thanks to Erin, who (in always in a need of a Sugarstick) proofread this for to make sure it looks pretty as much as it will read pretty. This chapter is angsty, but I did enjoy writing it. This semester at school is MURDER! Between classes, work, more work, rehearsal, and extre curriculars, i wam swamped, but I will try to the best of my ability to get a new chapter out as soon as I can.  
Please if you have any suggestions on where to go next, please do not hesitate to make a suggestsion or two.  
Ok, i am off to class, but thanks again and Enjoy!**

_Hi. You have reached Betty Suarez, Assistant Editor-In-Chief of MODE magazine. Sorry I am unable to take your call at this time. Please leave your name and contact information after the beep and I will get back to you in a timely manner. Thank you and have a nice day._

"Hi Betty. It's me, Henry. Just called to say that Nate and I are safely in Tucson. I'll Facebook you later. Ok, I'll talk to you later. Bye."

Henry closes his phone and proceeds to go to the Corral to get his and Nate's luggage. He quickly finds his and sees his son run to the other end to get his. As the door opens to flag a cab, he feels the intense rush of heat on his face. He breathes in the dry, Arizona air.

_Welcome Home Henry_ he says to himself as he gets into the cab with his son and rides back to his house thousands of miles away from where he really wants to be…

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

"Oh Hilda, I was this close! I could feel his breath on mine. I couldn't breathe. Again!" Betty says to her sister in a fury.

"I know, I know…Pretty intense night huh?" Hilda asks.

"You can say that again!" Betty says falling back on her bed, feet hanging off. "Oh Hilda, I would'nt kow what to do if he kissed me. It was like how I felt al those years ago in the moments we almost kissed. They were mellowed out and such and they came rushing back, like a tital wave, in a moment of temporary insanity! I don't know what to feel, how to act, what to do!"

Hilda lays back and joins her sister, just laying there in silence. She knows that this is a confusing time yet again in her sister life. But she knows why; Because it **is** Henry. She keeps telling about what she is feeling, so she knows what to ask her sister.

"You know the question I am going to ask you, and we both know the answer. So…do you?" Hilda asks. Betty turns her head to face her sister, tears already forming in her eyes.

"Yes." She says softly, a tear rolling down her cheek. She knew exactly what Hilda was saying. She could hear it in her head, clear as day. As she lays there in silence with her sister, the events of the previous night on permanent replay in her head, she can't help but think about what could've happened and what she really is feeling. The question Hilda asked is one of the hardest and easiest questions that she can answer all because of her answer: _Yes, I still love him. I have never stopped…_

Henry opens the door, and walks into his home. It was as clean, if not, cleaner than he left it a week ago. He puts his luggage down in the middle of the living room, making a mental note to bring it into his bedroom later. He walks into the kitchen and spots note on the table:

_Henry-_

_Kept the house neat and tidy. _

_Bought you fresh, food, milk, ect. It's in the fridge and cabinet._

_Call me later and do tell me about you and Nate's trip to New York._

_I love you._

_~Mom_

Henry smiles as he puts down the note and opens the fridge to see it stocked, same with the cabinets. He takes out bread and cheese.

"Nate, you want a grilled cheese?" Henry calls, taking out a pan.

"Yes, please." he hears the little voice of his son from his room.

Dinner was quiet. Henry could see that his son was tired form the flight, so they did not talk much, just ate.

"So Nate," Henry breaks the silence. "What did you think of New York?"

"It was awesome Daddy! Can we go back soon?" Nate asks with excitement in his voice.

"Maybe." Henry responds with a smile. Dinner finishes nicely. After Nate takes his bathe and is tucked in, Henry quietly gets his luggage from the living room. He proceeds to his room and unpacks and organizes his dirty clothes from the clean clothes. He checks the pockets of the pants to make sure he didn't leave anything in them. He picks up a dirty pair of pants and feels that there is something hard in the pocket. He takes it out and realizes what it is. He opens up the small square box to see the ring he purchased five years earlier. It still sparkles just like the day he bought it, just like the smile on her face, which he saw. He remembered that he packed the right and put it in his pants pocket the previous night, before him and Nate left for the Suarez's for dinner. _Wishful thinking,_ he thought to himself with a silent pitiful chuckle.

He finishes unpacking in an altered mood, just not feeling it anymore. He gets into his pajamas and brings his laptop with him as he gets under the covers. He turns it on and logs on to facebook, and hesitates before he types her name in the search box and clicks on her profile. He sees that she has not logged on all day. He decides to leave a message on her wall:

_Betty-  
If you did not get my voicemail, Nate and I are safely in Tucson. Thanks again for dinner. We both had a wonderful time. Call me later.  
~Henry_

As he shuts off his laptop, he tucks himself in and shuts off the light on the nightstand next to him, he just can't help but think about the ring.

"How can I be so STUPID to bring the ring? It's not like I was going to propose to her again, and like she as going to actually agree. I guess it was an impulse? Maybe an inkling that maybe, just maybe that we can start off where we left off and fulfill the fantasies that we dreamed of? Why did I do that? Just…why?" he thought aloud to himself. He closes his eyes, hoping to fall into a deep sleep, to dream of a time so long ago, but as he sloes his eyes, all he saw was Betty's face as he climbed into the cab just 24 hours prior…

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

"Ok, I have to go make some breakfast for Justin and Papi. I'll actually let him sleep for once." Hilda laughs, getting off the bed.

"Ok. Be down in a minute to help you." Betty says sitting up. Hilda starts towards the door.

"Hilda…"

"Yes?" Hilda asks, stopping at the threshold of the room.

"Thanks. Again." Betty chuckles.

"I'm your sister. That's what I'm here for." Hilda smiles as she exits the room.

Betty gets up, gets dressed then grabs her Blackberry. She sees that she has a voicemail and a wall post on Facebook. The flip of her stomach tells her that she may already know who both are from. She decides to check the wall post. _Wouldn't know what to do if I heard his voice,_ she thought to herself as she logs on, and checks her profile, to see the wall post from Henry. She read it. _Voicemail. I knew it,_ she thought as she finishes the wall post. She decided not to call but just to write to him back. She claick on his profile and proceeds to write on his wall:

_Thank you for your message. I am glad to know that you two are safe.  
As you know, it is crazy busy, but we will have to make a time so we can chat. Thanks again for keeping me informed. Talk to you soon.  
~Betty_

Betty clicked "post" before she changed her mind. _I mean I did say to keep me informed and to tell me when they landed. He knows that I have my limits. I just don't want him to think that we are getting back to where we started…or do I?_ she asks herself as she jumps out of bed, walks down the stairs, and proceeds to help Hilda with breakfast…

-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-:-

"Hello?"

"Hi Mom."

"Henry! Nice to hear your voice. You back in town?"

"Yes mom. Nate's over Charlie and Gabe's. I'm just doing some more unpacking. So Mom?"

"Yes sweetie."

"Can we talk? You know, just you and me? Nate's going to be there all day today."

"Sure? How about you make me lunch? I did buy the food after all," she chuckles.

"I was thinking the exact same thing. Lunch sounds perfect."

"Great. Noonish?"

"Perfect. I will have lunch ready."

"Thank you sweetie. I love you."

"I love you too Mom. Bye." He says before hanging up.

Later that day, he is putting the finishing touches on the egg salad on toasted white sandwiches with salad when the doorbell rings. He sees his mother's smiling face as he opens the door. She immediately hugs her son as she walks through the door.

"Nice to see you mom." He smiles as she ends the embrace. They proceed to the dining table where they start the meal pretty quietly, just normal discussion about the trip and some of the things they saw and got.

"So, what did she do now?" his mother asks.

"who?"

"Betty of course. I could hear it in your voice. What's going on with her?" she asks, with a knowing in her voice.

"I forgot that I brought the ring with me to New York, and I found it yesterday in my pants pocket when I was checking the pockets." Henry says in a softened tone.

"Oh," she says. "Well, we have all day, so why don't you just tell me what happened. And don't lie. I know when you do."

"I know. I'm a terrible liar." He blushes. "Ok, I will tell you." He says moving to the seat next to his mother and proceeds to tell her the whole story from the day he went to the sandwich shop…


	14. Heart to Hearts

**A/N: Can It be?! Yes! It is an update! I have been SWAMPED with eveything in life this past semester. I have the rest of this story written out in my notebook (it's been for quite some time), it's just that I need to find the time to type it all up and make it all pretty like!**

**Many thank yous (as usual) to my amazing friend Erin who always checks it over to make sure it's fine. Here is your sugarstick sweetie!**

**I do have to say that I feel like a part of my soul is ripped out when I found out that this is the final season of UB. The past four years watching the characters grow, has been amazing. I will definately be sad to see this go. Bright side: it is rumored right now that Chris Gorham might be back for the series finale and they are talking about a wedding. So let's keep the hope alive!**

**Happy Valentine's/Singles Awareness Day to all and enjoy my valentine to you all: Nerd Love. :D**

**~Bridget**

It might be Saturday, but Betty needs to get some work done in order to make the deadline. So after breakfast, she politely excuses herself to her family and makes her way to her apartment, showers, changes into fresh clothes, and makes her way towards MODE around lunch. On her way, she passes a very familiar place and walks in. As she waits in line to give her friend her order, she picks up her phone and dials. Her friend picks it up second ring.

_Hello?_

"Christina, it's Betty. Are you free for lunch?"

_Yeah. Where are you?_

"At Gio's shop. 15 minutes?"

_Of course. Let me wake up Stuart so he can be up if something happens to William at school._

"Thank you Christina. Bye" she hangs up as she approaches the counter.

"Hi Betty." Gio says with a smile. He saw that something was up when she walked in and maybe that dinner did not go as well as she planned.

"Hi Gio."

"The usual I presume?"

"Yeah." she says in monotone. He puts in the order and leans on the counter.

"So..."

"So what?" Betty asks in an irritated tone.

"How was dinner?"

"Christina will be here in about 10 minutes. She'll want the same as me just so you know." Betty says, changing the subject.

"Oh, OK, I get it. Well when you want to talk, you know where I am." he says. "I'll bring your lunch over when Christina shows up."

"Thank you Gio." Betty says walking to her usual table in the back of the shop.

"Betty." She turns around. "Are you alright?"

"I don't know." Betty says with a slight frown as she makes her way and sits at the table. Gio looks over the counter at her as me makes the sandwiches, worried about his friend. All he thinks is _what did he do to her?_

* * *

"I went to unpack and when I looked through the pockets, there it was. I forgot that I brought it with me. But why did I? Why did I bring the ring? I don't know mom!"

"Don't kid yourself sweetie. You know why you brought it." Henry's mother, Helen says in her usual calm, cool, collected tone.

She knows that Betty is a sensitive topic with her son. Henry was not in the best of conditions when he returned from New York with Nate and Charlie five years ago. Correction: he was a wreck! She knows that he did not show it on the outside when he was among everyone else, but she knew he was hurting and when they finally did talk one-on-one when he got back, it broke her heart to see her son crumble when he told her what happened and what he did.

She knows that even having never meeting her yet, she knows that Betty is _The One_ for her son. She sees the sparkle in his eye when he speaks of her. She hears the emotion in his voice when he speaks of her. No matter who he brought home to meet her, she knows that he was always comparing and that they will never be on the same caliber as Betty. She knows that he has unfinished business with her and he needs to get it done.

"You know what you need to do." she tells her son.

"Yeah, I know, but what happens if-"

"Do you really think that she will?"

"No, but-"

"Then what are you waiting for?!" She ask him. He sits there, contemplating he situation in his head. She knows what he is thinking. He is going over odds and statistics on the situation, but deep down she knows that he doesn't care about the statistics or the chances. He will risk anything and everything (except for Nate of course) for Betty. He looks back up at his mom.

"So?" Helen asks. Henry smiles sheepishly.

"Will you watch Nate for me?" He answers with a smile.

"Of course! Good thing you didn't finish unpacking huh?" she laughs.

"Yeah" he says getting up from the table and grabbing his luggage, filling some of his already half-filled luggage along the way. He calls a taxi and twenty minutes later, the cab driver is honking his horn from outside. Henry gives his mother a hug.

"I want a call when you land. I want the play-by-play, you got it?" she tells her son.

"Yes Mom. I love you."

"I love you too." she says. Henry walks to the cab and gets in after putting his luggage in the back. "Go get her!" Helen yells at her son as the cab drives away, a smile on her face, with a feeling that things will be working out for the good for him.

"Where to?" the cabbie asks.

"New York City" Henry says with conviction.

"Business or pleasure?" the cab driver asks.

"Love." Henry says simply. The driver looks in his rear view window seeing the look on the passengers face looking out the window and smiles...

* * *

"And he just left like that? All high, dry, hot and bothered?!"

"In the simplest terms, yes." Betty says chomping on another chip. She has not even touched her sandwich, just eating a chip every now and then, here and there.

"Oh my, that is bad." Christina says.

"Tell me about it. I don't know what I would do if it happened. I don't even want to picture it!"

"Understandable." Christina answers in her thick accent.

"So what do I do? Do I just let it go? Do I ask him about it?"

"No. I say you should-" the ringing of her cell phone interrupts her train of thought. She checks the ID and mouths a "sorry...Stuart" before picking up.

'Hello Stuart what's- oh! Oh ok I will be right there." Christina says before shutting her phone and quickly getting out of her seat.

"Sorry Betty,have to go. School is having trouble with little William and they called him; something about chocolate sauce and grated Parmesan cheese. I need to go get him."

"Yes, go, go!"

"We'll finish this conversation later sweetie!" Christina calls from the door before flying out of the building. Betty just sits there looking at her sandwich, having lost her appetite. _That conversation did not help at _all she thinks to herself. The shifting of the chair in front of her snaps her out of her thoughts to look up and see the friendly face now sitting in front of her.

"So that conversation did not help." the friend said.

"Gio, you read my mind. Tell me about it." Betty scoffs, putting her head in her hands. After a moment, she looks up at Gio.

"Gio, you know what happened. Don't tell me you did not ease drop our conversation."

He sighed sarcastically. "You got me. I did ease drop. I am a horrible person." he continues with the sarcasm. Betty smiles a small smile.

"There she is, there's Betty." Gio reassures her friend, but her small smile quickly fades again.

"But really, what do I do now Gio? I don't know. I feel that if we continued the way that were going, something was gonna happen, something big. I had a feeling that he was hiding something from me, but he wanted to." she ponders out loud, then a thought comes to her. "You don't think...no. No! No he wouldn't! It's crazy! Why would I even think of that? No, he's not that crazy to do that- or would he?" she looks at Gio with that look. He knows exactly what she means.

"But what if he would?" Gio asks.

"He wouldn't do it unless he was sure I..." Betty trails off.

"Well, do you?"

"Of course! I never stopped. Oh if only I kissed him! If only we did!" she says in frustration.

"Well would you if-"

"Yes. In a heartbeat. I've been regretting this decision for five years Gio. It was not until then night that I knew how much I really regretted what I decided to do. And to tell you the truth, I do not want to wait five more!"

"Then what are you going to do about it?" Gio asks. She jumps out of her seat.

"I have to go!" she says getting her things and making her way to the door.

"Where are you going?" Gio calls with a knowing smile.

"Correcting the mistake I did five years ago!" Betty yells, running out the door. Two subway trains and a cab later, she arrives at the airport ready to start another epic journey...

* * *

_Wow, I feel like I was just here. Oh wait, I was_. Henry laughs to himself as he walks out of the airport and into the cab, taking him to Queens. He arrives at the familiar house and pays the cabbie as he grabs his luggage and makes his way to the door, ringing the door bell. The slight breeze of the early evening blow on his face, feeling cool on it, hopefully drying the sweat on his forehead.

"Henry, what are you doing here? Where's Nate?" a stunned Ignacio asks when he answers the door.

"Nate is in Tucson. I am alone. I need to talk to Betty. Is she here?"

"No. Actually, I have not heard from her all day. Last time I remember, she was going to grab lunch then get some things done at MODE. You look tired, please, come in for coffee-"

"Thank you Ignacio, but I just need to find Betty. I need to talk to her."

"Ok Henry, are you sure-"

"Sir, I know that we were never on the same page about this, especially after my son was born. I know I hurt your daughter deeply, but I did not mean to. I love your daughter. I have never stopped loving your daughter. Five years ago, I took a leap of faith. I forgot to hold her hand and I let her go. I just can't do that again. I can't let her go this time." Henry says with a sudden surge of bravery. Ignacio looks at him in a different way. He knows deep down that Henry did nothing but mean well. He knows that seeing him and his daughter is like looking in the past, seeing himself with Rosa. He knew deep down that this was the man his youngest was going to end up with. He already loves Nate, and he always accepted Henry as part of the family, no matter how much he showed otherwise.

"Ok. Go what you need to _do mijo_." Ignacio says with a smile. Henry takes a huge step and envelops the older man in a hug. He is so much more relieved now that he knows that Ignacio _is _finally on board. "Thank you!" Henry calls off as he runs towards the subway, luggage and all. Three subway trains later, he is in times square barreling towards Gio's shop. He barges in just as Gio was about to close the shop.

"Henry, what are you doing here?"

"Where's Betty?" he breathlessly asks.

"Not here. She left a couple of hours ago."

"Oh, so she's probably at MODE or on her way to her apartment, can you tell me where-"

"Henry, she's not even in the city. Or in that matter, the state if my calculations are correct." Gio answers him.

"Gio, where is Betty?!"


	15. Something's Coming

**A/N: OMG it's amiracle! I am updating TWICE in less than week! Someone call the news! I have this time now so I want to finish it! This will be the last update for this week and I will update teh lest 2 or so chapters next week during my break off.**

**For those who don't know, I sprained my knee on Sunday, and they are asking me to stay off it as much as possible. Which means in my case, I sit in front of the computer and type as fast as my little chubby fingers can take me (win!)!**

**As usual, I thank greatly to Erin who betas it and makes sure it looks nice. Here is your Sugarstick! And also thanks to those who read it (especially Henry's Honeys) and to some devoted readers. You guys are the reason I keep this fic going!**

**But unfortunately, as I said, there is about 2 or so chapers left (a chapter, an epilogue, and POSSIBLY a deleted scene type bonus chapter for those how feel up to it ;-] ), so I hope you enjoy this chapter and please comment. They make me go! :D**

**~Bridget**

The Arizona air was much more dry than Betty had expected, like her mouth would notice. Her mouth has been dry since she started towards the airport. She brings what little she went to the airport with into the cab with her as she gives the cab driver the address that she looked up on her Blackberry. Her palms were waterworks, sweating like crazy all the way to the house. She thanks the cab driver and throws a fist full of bills when it pulls in front. She sheepishly walks to the door and rings the doorbell when she arrives. Her heart is pounding not knowing what to say when she saw his face...

An older woman answers the door. She seems oddly familiar, yet she knows she has never met her before.

"Hello. May I help you?" the woman asks with a familiar smile.

"I'm sorry, I must have the wrong house. I'm looking for Henry Grubstick."

"Well I'm his mother, Helen." she says _So __that's__ why she looked so familiar _Betty thought to herself.

"Oh! Henry's told me so much about you. I don't know if you know me, I'm-"

"Betty Suarez." Helen finished. Betty was surprised. She knew that he had a close relationship with his mother, but never to that extent she guessed.

"Yes. I guess he has I presume." Betty blushes.

"Oh yes. He has spoken so much about his time in New York both times, especially you. Why don't you come in for a cup of coffee or tea." Helen offers.

"Tea would be lovely. I've had nothing but coffee all day, I need a little change, thank you Mrs. Grubstick."

"You're welcome, and please, call me Helen. We can just skip over all the proper stuff. I feel like I've already known your for quite some time." she says letting Betty in.

"Fine by me. Thank you." Betty says, feeling some relief from that, following Helen into the living room.

"I'll start the water. Please, make yourself comfortable while I get everything ready. We can have it out here."

"Thank you Helen." Betty kindly says. Helen gives her a smile before retreating to the kitchen, Betty noticing where Henry and Nate got their smiles from. She looks around the living room noticing how neat and tidy it is. She walks towards the walls, following the line of pictures along them, of both Henry and Nate; pictures from the present, a lot from the past, even pictures of Henry from when he was younger. She keeps following the pictures past a room that is green and blue with toys scattered around, giving her the know that it is Nate's room. She arrives at the end of the hall and opens the already half-opened door. She knows the moment she walks in that it is Henry's room. The walls are painted a rustic red color and scattered all around are pictures of Nate, him, and family. His bed is made, and seems like the room is neat and clean, except for a few small piles of clothes that seemed to be by his nightstand next to his bed. She notices that the top drawer is slightly open so she walks over to close it. A gleam of something catches her eyes, stopping her from closing it, and opens it instead to see what caught her eye. She picks it up out of the drawer and she loses her breath in seeing what she is holding in her hands.

It was a picture of them, the same one that was on her screen saver five years ago. In that picture they looked so happy, so in love. She remembers that day too. It was one of their first dates as an official couple. They spent the day walking up and down the path, holding hands, eating from the vendors, asking people to take their picture for them. It was a great day. She remembers it oh so well just thinking about it makes her feel nostalgic, making her feel in that moment when the picture was taken. She remembers that night after they left, dinner at his place, then falling into the ocean of pillows and covers...

"Betty? Betty, where have you gone?" she hears Helen's voice form the living room. She quickly returns the picture back to it's spot in the drawer and exits his room, leaving the door just as much open as she encountered it.

"Sorry Helen. I got caught up looking at the pictures along the wall and I just made my way down there and into his room. I didn't touch anything, I just liked looking at all the photos." Betty says, going back down the hall, cheeks turning a shade of pink.

"That's ok sweetie, Henry told me that you like snooping around a little bit. Here, the tea and such is done. Come on over here." Helen says, motioning to a comfy-looking chair in the living room by the table that has the tray with tea, sugar, cream, and snacks, while also making Betty's cheeks turn a darker shade. She sits in the chair (and it is really comfy) as Helen sits in the chair across from her on the other side of the table. Betty prepares her tea (with cream and a lot of sugar), and takes a cookie from the tray as they begin to talk about pretty much anything and everything. Helen asks Betty of her family (which she has heard plenty about) and her job at MODE, while Betty asked questions about Henry's life here, where he works exactly, where does Nate go to school, how is Charlie and Gabe. Betty can't believe that she just met this woman, yet she feels like she has known her her whole life.

"So, now that we are all caught up with each other," Helen giggles, "tell me. Why are you in Tucson sweetie? Why could'nt you call him or send him a message?"

"To make it short and sweet," Betty started. "I feel like your son and I have some unfinished business. I had a sort-of epiphany very shortly ago, and I need to tell him in person than over a line or through a computer screen. That's why I am in Tucson Helen."

"I completely understand Betty. In fact, that is the exact reason why my son is currently in New York." Betty almost choked on her tea.

"What did you just say?!" Betty asks.

"Henry, my son, is in New York to talk to you. He left earlier this afternoon. He also feels there is some unfinished business to be done." Helen says with a knowing smirk. Betty felt a swoop in her stomach the tone Helen said "unfinished business".

"Well, I guess we will have to also discuss this lack of communication we seem to be having." Betty says with a nervous giggle. Helen laughs in response. Silence. Helen lets Betty digest what just happened, what she told her. She can see with the look on her face that she has a hunch.

"So by 'unfinished business' you mean-"

"No." Helen simply says. "I may know, but I am not the person to tell you. This is something he needs to tell you. Trust me, if I felt I needed to, I would have. But I know you would much rather hear it from him." she says with a small smile. She reaches over and grabs Betty's shoulder, making her look up at the older woman. Helen gives Betty a reassuring look.

"Don't worry. Whatever you are thinking, you are right. I see the glimmer in his eye when he speaks of you. I know that he cares for you deeply. I know I may only have met you a little while ago, but I already do love you Betty. You are just like he told me you were. You're even better than he described. I can without a doubt see why he bought that ring five years ago." Helen tells Betty. Betty looks at her with adoration, also with tears starting to form.

"I have never stopped loving your son Helen. Even if it were 10 years since we have last seen each other, I would still react the same way that I do now. He gives me butterflies in my stomach. My heart beats at what seems like a million miles an hour. My mouth goes dry, my palms sweat when I think of him, see him, feel his presence. When he is with me, I feel invincible. When I am around him, I feel complete. He makes me feel like a real person, worthwhile, sexy, wanted, beautiful. I just could not accept his proposal then. He needed to do what he needed to do and the same for myself. While it was the right decision, it was also the wrong one. I was a wreck when I left and was on my trip. I kept wishing that he was there with me. I still dream about him, about the fantasies we both dream of, having a life together, a family, just being happy finally. I really hope you are meaning the thing I am thinking of when you mentioned 'unfinished business'. I would not be any happier if that is the case." Betty says to the woman.

"So what are you going to do?" Helen asks in the same tone that she asks her son only earlier today.

"Well, I guess soon enough, your son will find out that I am here while he is there. I do want to avoid missing him, but it just does not feel right here. I need to think of a place where we would meet."

"How about the middle?" Helen plainly asks. Betty whips her head around at the older woman.

"Of course! Why didn't I think of that before! We always talked about meeting in the middle. It's perfect! Oh, thank you Helen!' Betty says before engulfing Helen in a hug.

"You are very welcome sweetie. Let me call the cab company." Helen says after the embrace.

Twenty minutes later, Betty gives Helen a hug right outside their door.

"I already told Henry I want the play-by-play, but I do want a call to make sure you safely landed, you got it?"

"Of course Helen. Thank you again."

"Anytime. And remember, no matter what happens, you now have my number so if you ever need anything, even just to say hi, please contact me. You are already family to me." Helen says sweetly.

"I will make sure of that. Thank you." Betty says before giving her a kiss on the cheek. She breaks the embrace and makes her way towards the cab. "Can you do me one favor Helen?"

"Anything Betty."

"Can you not egg him on? If he wants me, he should know where to find me." Betty says putting her minimal things in the cab.

"Oh sweetie, I was already planning on doing that. He won't have any issues I assure you." Helen calls as she gets in.

"Thank you Helen!" Betty calls in the cab as it starts to drive away.

"Anytime! Good luck!" Helen calls. She stays until the cab is out of sight then makes her way back in. As she cleans up from the tea they had, the house phones rings. She doesn't need to check the caller ID, she knows who it is.

"Hello my son. How did it go?"

_"She's not here mom. Betty is in our neck of the woods_."

"I know. She just left here. Oh Henry, she is just like you told me, even better!"

_"WHAT?! What do you mean she just left?! What did you do, what did you say? Where is she going? Mom, what do I do?!"_

"Calm down Henry, calm down. I just had a nice conversation with her. I can see why you love her so much, she is just an angel. After our chat, she feels the exact same way however, she knows that neither New York nor here is the right place to solve this issue, so she just left to go to the spot where you will resolve it."

_"But where is that mom? The only places we have talked about is New York and Tucson! New York, Tucson...oh! I know where she went. I know exactly where she went. Why didn't I think of that before? Thanks mom!"_

"Remember, I still want the play-by-play got it? I still want to know what happened and I do want a call when you are safely landed."

_"Yes mom, I will do that. I love you."_

" I love you too sweetie. Now go get her." Helen says before hanging up. She flops down in the comfy chair and just thinks to herself _It's gonna happen. It's really gonna happen..._

* * *

"What do you mean she's in Tucson?!" Henry yells in the sandwich shop at the man behind the counter. Gio moves from behind the counter and towards Henry.

"Betty is in Tucson. She went to see you. Comon, you look hungry, sit down. I'll make you a sandwich and we can-"

"No! I don't want to talk to you. I want to walk to Betty!" He still refuses.

"Please? Just appease me and sit down. You look hungry, let me make you a sandwich. It's on the house." Gio asks. Silence for a moment.

"Ok, fine." Henry caves and sits at a near by table. A few very quiet moments later, Gio comes at the table with a tray of 2 sandwiches: Henry's normal (Egg Salad on White) and Gio's sandwich along with chips and water, and sits across the table from him." Henry takes a bite of his sandwich and a swig of water.

"Thanks." Henry says.

"Anytime." Gio says with a smile.

"So, just to clear this whole thing up. While I flew to New York to come and talk to her, Betty flew to Tucson to talk to me?"

"That is correct my friend." Gio answers.

"Well, we always had a little trouble with communication." Henry says with a nervous giggle.

"How do you know that she is heading to Tucson?"

"Because I was there with her when she decided. I was talking to her."

"What did you say?"

"I didn't say much. I let her do all the talking and the thinking. She knew what she wanted to do, she just needed to hear it for herself, out loud."

"Hear what?" Henry asks.

"Are you really asking that Henry? Really? You know what she wanted to hear." Gio says in a knowing tone.

"That she wanted to talk to me?"

"You think that she would fly all the way to Tucson just to talk to you? You know what she wants, and its much for than just a chat." What Gio has been trying to tell him just hit him like a bag of bricks.

"Are you saying that if I...she was gonna..."

"Why don't you ask her yourself?" Gio asks.

"But I'm scared. What happens if-"

"Do you really, seriously think that after all you guys been through that she's gonna say no?"

"I just don't-"

"You DO know Henry! You know what she will say. She's been waiting for this for five years now. All she has been talking about is you. I see her face when she talks about were never forgotten. She LOVES you Henry Grubstick. She has always loved you and will always love you. She has never stopped. I see the glimmer in her eye when we speak of you, i can hear the difference in her voice. Five years ago, she rejected your proposal. She did what both of you needed to do. Now is different. You both are at the same place and both of you know what you need to do." Gio tells Henry. "So Egg Salad,what are YOU gonna do about it?" Henry gets up from his seat.

"I gotta go!" He says grabbing his luggage and heading for the door.

"Good luck Egg Salad."

"Thanks Sandwich Boy!" Henry calls as he exits the shop. all in a rush. He calls his mom.

_"Hello my son. How did it go?"_

"She's not here mom. Betty is in our neck of the woods."

_"I know. She just left here. Oh Henry, she is just like you told me, even better!"_ Henry stops where he is power walking.

"WHAT?! What do you mean she just left?! What did you do, what did you say? Where is she going? Mom, what do I do?!" he asks in a panic

_"Calm down Henry, calm down. I just had a nice conversation with her. I can see why you love her so much, she is just an angel. After our chat, she feels the exact same way however, she knows that neither New York nor here is the right place to solve this issue, so she just left to go to the spot where you will resolve it."_ His mother proceeds to tell him, being so cryptic and not helping.

"But where is that mom? The only places we have talked about is New York and Tucson! New York, Tucson..." He thinks for the moment, trying to figure out where else would they go. Somewhere that they both thought of, where they imagined going to see each other. "Oh! I know where she went. I know exactly where she went. Why didn't I think of that before? Thanks mom!"

_"Remember, I still want the play-by-play got it? I still want to know what happened and I do want a call when you are safely landed."_

"Yes mom, I will do that. I love you."

_"I love you too sweetie. Now go get her."_ She says before he hangs up. He commutes via a subway and a taxi to the airport and arrives at the counter.

"One ticket to Springfield Missouri please."


	16. Something Good

**A/N: And here it is: the last chapter before the epilogue. I'm still thinking of possibly doing a deleted scene from this story if I get enough good reviews from this for those who like...uh...more _mature_ things ;)**

**Thanks, as always to Erin, who makes sure it is good enough. Here is your Sugarstick! Thanks to those who still reads and give me the push to finish this epic story, especially Henry's Honeys of the original I-C. You guys rock!**

**I will TRY (keyword: try) to get the Epilogue up before I leave to go back to school on Friday, but I can't guarantee anything, but I will try!**

**Reviews are always appreciated and keep the Nerd Love alive!**

**~Bridget  
**

_It all started at a bridge. I guess it ends at it too._ Betty laughs to herself as she reaches the middle of the bridge in the center of Springfield Commons. She is nervous, with palms sweating, mouth dry, heart beating, the usual symptoms. But at the same time, she is just exhilarated. She knows that when (and not if, when) he finds her, something big will happen, the same thing she felt that night a few nights ago. As the time goes slowly by, she knows, she can feel it that he is getting closer.

Throughout the flight from Tucson, Betty was a wreck. If she didn't try to sleep (with no luck), the attendants would probably think she was having seizures the whole time, being twitchy and shuffling in her seat constantly. She just kept asking herself: _Is he going to?_ She tried to calm herself down by doing the crossword in the newspaper, reading the magazines, and even listing the pros and cons of going to Missouri to see is she and Helen were right (ok, maybe that didn't help that much). She has imagined the scene in her head so many times, with so many outcomes (including one ending in a show tune) and she doesn't even know what to expect or do. All she knows is when she landed at Springfield-Branson National Airport, she got off the plane as fast as she could and hailed the nearest cab. She told the cab driver to the nearest place to stay, but seeing the bridge in the middle of the commons, she just _knew_ that there is where she should be, so she quickly told the driver to stop and let her off there.

And that's where she's been. Standing there in the middle of the bridge, hundreds of miles from either edge of this cross-country excursion, just standing there, arms leaning on the edge, hands off, looking around at the scenery, just waiting. She hears footsteps approach the area, getting closer to her. She doesn't have to see who it is. She knows by the way he is walking, she knows that it is him. Everything is running at a million miles an hour, but she needs to resist the temptation to jump into his arms and never let go…

* * *

Henry's journey hasn't been a calm one either. The whole flight from New York, he fiddled with the box and the small ring in it, playing the scene in his head. He tried to sleep but it just did not work. All he could think about was the end goal: Betty. He might have his hopes, but his doubts are peaking through. _What happens if she says yes? What will I tell Nate? What happens if she says no? What do I tell Nate? Will Nate and I go to New York, or will she move out to us? No, don't think about that already Henry. Don't count your chickens before they hatch._ he keeps thinking to himself.

"Where to?" The cab driver asks when Henry gets in after putting his luggage away.

"The nearest hotel please." he simply says. _I know that she's here, but besides that, I have no clue where I am to go! _he thinks to himself as he looks out the window. They pass a couple of liquor stores, a gas station or two, and the city commons. As they are driving past, he sees a bridge amongst the trees in the center, and a woman with long brown hair, arms at the edge. He also sees…red glasses.

"Betty!" Henry breathes. "Stop the cab. Stop it! Right here is perfect, please stop." The cab driver looks at him with a confused look, but obliges and pulls over. Henry quickly gets his luggage and throws a fist full of bills before power walking to the bridge. He slows down as he get closer. His palms are as wet as ever, his mouth the complete opposite, his heart pounding in his chest. He walks onto the bridge. She simply stands fully up and turns to him, looking at him, making him feel breathless.

"Hi." he breathlessly says.

"Hi." Betty responds softly, trying to figure out what to say. It was as if all that she prepared just escaped her mind, not knowing where it went. They just stand there looking at each other. He looks at her thinking that she has never looked so beautiful until now. She is looking at him, hoping, praying that for once, things will go right for her, for them. She opens her mouth, trying to say something but he raises a hand, stopping her.

"Six years ago, I met a woman. I did not think that humdrum day that I will be here, smack dab in the middle of nowhere, on this bridge, meeting in a place where both of us have not been before. I didn't know that this woman would send me on a rollercoaster ride of emotions so rapidly. I didn't know then that I would encounter so many sleepless nights, sweaty palms, or cold showers as often than I did." he smiles smugly. "However, when I did meet this woman I knew from the first moment that she was special. How special though, I did not understand and did not know, but now, I know this. Betty Suarez, I can't live without you. I feel alive when you are near, incomplete when you are not. You make me feel invincible, like Superman, that I can do anything. Nate already loves you, and I know that you care for him too. For more than _five years_ I have dreamed of us, being a family, living our lives together, being _happy_. For way too long, I have wondered what it would be like, and I don't want to wait anymore. I love you Betty Suarez. I always have, I never stopped, and I never will."

He exhales the breath he used to say all that he did and looks at her with a look of relief, stress, love, lust, fright, anticipation, too many to name. Betty just looks at him. Silence. _Please say something._ Henry thinks as he just looks back at her. Betty just stands there, in silence. Henry is losing hope. _I failed. I can't believe that this is happening, and after all that._ He keeps telling himself, thinking the worst. But then she moves closer to him. She looks up at him, tears brimming her eyes, at least that's what he thinks he sees with the tears brimming his. Betty closes then looks back up with this look and a thousand-watt smile. He knows now. He knows that all is well. Betty then takes her hand and pulls his head down in a crushing kiss. She instantaneously wraps her arms around him and the same with him to her. He lets her melt with him and deepening the kiss. After a few minutes of loving exploration Betty breaks it.

"Oh Henry" kiss "I love you too." kiss "I don't know how" kiss "I went this long" kiss "without you" kiss "I'm sorry that I said no." kiss "I made a mistake." kiss. She breaks it and looks into his eyes. "Forgive me." He leans down and kisses her again, with more passion. Mid-kiss, he sneaks his hand into the pocket and takes the ring out of the box. They break the kiss, and touch foreheads.

"Marry me." he breathlessly says, slipping the ring onto her finger. She looks down at it, seeing the ring sparkle, thinking back to that time long ago. She knew that she made a mistake, that she should have done this all along, but she knows it's ok now. She looks at him. He can swear that she sees that special sparkle in her eye, like the ring that is on her finger. She smiles widely.

"I thought you'd never ask." she says breathlessly before putting her lips on his again. After some time, it was getting dark and cold, so they broke the kiss and silently made their way, hand-in-hand to the nearest motel. They have quite a lot of making up to do…


	17. Epilogue

**A/N: Wow. I guess this is it for this story. What a crazy ride this story has gone on! Two years ago I have started this, it seems so bittersweet that I am finishing it. It is also hard to come to terms that with the show ending, this could be my last UB story :(. I am willing to make a "deleted" scene from this story for those with more adult tastes, but I need to know if you guys want it. I will gladly do it as a last hurrah for this story!**

**I would like to thank each and everyone that has read/favorited/story alerted/commented/helped with this story. I especially would like to thank Erin who has been there throughout the whole story, making sure this was "squee" worthy and that it didn't suck. If I could, I would give her a truck full of Sugarsticks for her. I also would like to espeically thank Henry's Honeys from the original I-C for being with each other through it all. You guys are truely amazing and I will not forget the grat stries we have had and the times we have had too.**

**I will of course will be writing stories, and I hope you guys will like what I will write in the future.**

**I guess that is all I have to say before it gets started. I hope you enjoy this final chapter.**

**Keep on singing,  
~Bridget**

Central Park in the early Summer is so beautiful, one of the best times of the year for them, so they make sure they frequent it as often as possible. Every Sunday afternoon, they do the same thing: Walk around the park, lunch from the hot dog vendor, stopping at the lake to see the birds, then to the playground.

"Comon!" Nate says grabbing his sister's hand up the slide to slide down. For 10, Nate is a very active child as he is smart. He loves to play sports, especially Soccer (he's the best goalie in the league) as much as he loves to read books (going into the 7th grade with the reading level of a high school sophomore). Yes, there are his moments, but Nate has become his own, as an unique and brilliant child in the eyes of his parents.

"Nate! Make sure you are holding onto Lizzy when you go down!" Betty calls.

"Yes mom!" Nate calls back as Betty watches her children especially her daughter carefully.

Eliza (Lizzy) Rosa Grubstick is a spitting image of her mother with long frizzy hair and chocolate eyes. Being only four, Lizzy already seems to have inherited both her mother's and her father's traits, being taller than the average height for a four-year-old, loving all people, reading,and helping her mother with the small garden in the window sill. As they watch their kids slide down the slide and off to play with the other parts of the playground, Betty and Henry find a nearby bench and sit watching their children with pride.

Since Betty finally accepted his proposal, everything seemed to go into place. Henry and Nate moved to New York right after Charlie gave birth to her daughter, Mary Kaitlyn Farkas. After Betty and Henry "made-up" he got a call from his mother to first congratulate the two, then to inform that Charlie is in labor. Betty and Henry took the first flight to Tucson they could catch and rushed to the hospital to see little Mary in Charlie's arms. Charlie knew the moment that both of them walked in that they were finally where they wanted to be with each other. Later that day, while Henry and Gabe went to get something from the cafeteria, Charlie and Betty had a talk, with Charlie apologizing for what happened all those years ago and that they can still try to be friends. "I would love that." Betty responded. Immediately after, Charlie asked Betty to be Mary's Godmother. Betty happily accepted.

Betty, Henry and Nate had a talk about what was going to happen. They decided after much talk that Henry and Nate would move to New York. Nate was ecstatic. Betty returned to New York while the father and son got ready to move and to finalize details on that. When she returned it seemed that her dream was even closer to being achieved. Daniel promoted her to MODE's Editor-In-Chief. A couple of weeks later at her congratulatory party, Betty herself had a surprise up her sleeve: she was pregnant.

The wedding was small affair in a church in her neighborhood, with family and friends in attendance a couple of months into her pregnancy. Betty simply glowed in her wedding dress, her bump starting to show. Henry looks at her and believes that she gets more beautiful every day that passes by. Nate was the ring bearer. As they exchanged vows. rings, and promises for years to come, their fate was finally sealed with a simple kiss. The congregation sighed a sigh of relief and bust into thunderous applause.

Lizzy came to be right on time. Luckily it was on a weekend, so Betty was not at work when her water broke. There was really no drama with the birth, well, except for Lizzy trying to come out in the car on the way to the hospital. However, it was controlled and Lizzy was born healthy and at normal size and weight. It was one of the happiest days of their lives.

As they make their way back home, they always make sure to cross the bridge. Nate and Lizzy never knew why, but every Sunday as they make their way back, they cross the same bridge. Henry and Betty stops at the middle, turns to each other and kiss. As the children start making their way off the bridge, running and skipping, Betty and Henry hold hands as they cross it together, always remembering where it all started...

**-The End-**


End file.
